KRASNODAR, March 29. /TASS/. Russian yachtsman Vitaly Yelagin, who embarked on a solo round-the-globe voyage in October 2023 and was out of touch for some time, has continued his journey off Argentina’s coast northwards, toward the Equator, his follower Alexey Chvanov told TASS.
According to earlier reports, radio contact with the yachtsman was lost on March 19, when he was near the Chilean coast. Later, he managed to contact an Argentinian rescue boat on the night from March 26 to 27 and reported his coordinates off Argentina.
"This is what we know today: we see him on Marinetraffic (a ship tracking service - TASS) and he is sailing northwards, to the Equator, in other words. He is still out of radio contact," Chvanov said.
Yelagin’s friend and fellow yachtsmen Andrey Trefilov told TASS that the fact that he had not asked help from the passing-by Argentinian vessel he got in touch with may mean that the man is all right and needs no medical assistance. According to Terfilov, Yelagin’s radio set might have stopped working, forcing him to use a less powerful backup radio.
It was reported earlier that the search operation was conducted in coordination with the Russian embassy in Chile. Satellite and radar imagery of the LKP (last known position) zone and planned route were used.
Vitaly Yelagin, who is a Russian champion in yachting, sailed off on his circumnavigation voyage on October 1, 2023 aboard the Daughter of the Wind Yacht, which was designed by prominent Soviet yacht designer from the Krasnodar Region Viktor Yazykov. According to Yelagin, he wants to "proudly carry the Russian flag around the world."