Orca Interactions
Library of Deterrent Measures and Actions Taken
Comments from skippers on deterrent measures and actions taken during an orca interaction
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Below are extracts from orca interaction reports submitted to the Cruising Association which are collated by the different deterrent measures and actions taken by the skipper/crew. The aim of extracting this data is to publish an easily researchable library of factors that may or may not impact or deter an interaction and minimise or avoid damage.
The level of damage is detailed in the extract but that does not indicate whether the damage was caused before or after the action was taken, and this should be considered in conjunction with the comments made by the skipper.
In some reports, several different deterrent measures are used.
In order to publish these extracted reports in a concise format, some words have been omitted as indicated in the text by: ……….
You can read the full text of each report by clicking/tapping on the hyperlinked ‘Inter’ report number.
You can also view an analysis of orca interactions by location, year and month since 2020.
Disclaimer
This page reproduces extracts from reports received by the Cruising Association from crews of affected boats (boats involved in interactions with orcas). It does not in any way comprise advice by the Cruising Association, its members or anyone submitting reports. Furthermore, the Cruising Association, its employees, contributors and relevant members shall not be liable for any loss, damage or inconvenience of any kind howsoever arising in connection with the use of this information, save to the extent required by applicable law.
The CA is aware that not all the actions reported by skippers are legal and the CA does not endorse any actions in breach of national or international legislation. Furthermore, the CA does not condone any actions against the orca which may be deemed as distressing or harmful.
Below are extracts from interaction reports where the skipper reported using noise.
When reading these comments take note of whether damage happened before the noise was made (although not always apparent from the report).
FROM AN ARTICLE IN YACHTING WORLD BY KATY STICKLAND 30 July 2024
(extracts reproduced with kind permission of Yachting World and the skipper of the yacht)
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
The yacht sank in the Strait of Gibraltar
Comments:
"I went up on deck, and all of a sudden, I heard a crunch, and it sounded like I’d hit a rock. I was probably about five miles out so it was unlikely to be a rock and there was nothing on the charts.
"I took the boat off auto and just took the wheel for a sec. And as I took the wheel, I felt the rudder go, and I heard the noise again. I thought, Geez, that’s not a rock. I thought maybe a rope had wrapped around the prop, but then I looked off the back of the boat, and there were two fairly young orcas, not quite fully grown."
[The skipper] said he followed the orca encounter advice: he let go of the wheel, tried to outrun the orcas and put the boat in reverse, all to no avail.
"They just didn’t let up. I know there is advice to completely stop the boat but I didn’t feel comfortable with that, although it wasn’t long before we couldn’t go anywhere because the rudder was broken."
[The skipper] said he threw pingers and firecrackers into the water.
"They took no notice whatsoever," ……….."After 40 minutes of trying to outrun them, putting the boat in reverse, they had disabled the rudder. That is when I saw two very big orcas sitting off the boat, around 10-15m away from the other three.
"There were five of them just slamming into the side of the boat and one of them was hitting the keel as well;
"The orcas continued to hit the boat’s hull until it cracked amidships.
"I saw water coming in from the starboard side of the boat, but I couldn’t pinpoint the source, which I believe was behind the cooking and fridge unit on the boat."
By the time the Spanish rescue boat had arrived, the yacht was already half-submerged."The captain of the boat asked permission to come onboard to see if he could save the boat, but he said there was just too much water to pump; she could not be saved. I saw the orca when I first spotted the rescue boat and then didn’t see them again. I can only assume the loud engine noise meant they cleared off."
[The skipper] said he was surprised by the ferocity of the orca encounter, although he said the Coastguard were less surprised.
[The skipper] says in hindsight he would not have done the voyage. He would also have stopped the boat immediately and turned everything off as soon as the orca encounter began.
The Cruising Association requested further detail from the skipper who provided the following clarifications:
When motoring away I got up to 8 knots for about 15 minutes and they continued to hit the rudder; I had to be careful as force on wheel would break your arm when they hit. I tried reverse for about 10 minutes both in a straight line and circle. They continued to attack rudder for the duration of the attack even once steering was broken. They hit the rudder when reversing I did not try to reverse once rudder was disabled. Structural damage was after rudder was broken they seemed to be hitting keel and midships, it felt like they gave up on keel and went to push boat and slam boat sideways.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
I did not see them coming at first. I noticed them because my steering wheel did strange things and then I saw a female orca next to the boat on starboard site and other ones on my port side. I stopped the autopilot and took the steering wheel softly in hand and slowed the boat down. There I could feel at least 4 more hits on my rudder.
My wife took a steel pipe and start hitting the emergency rudder pin to make noise. We tried to move away and I speeded up the boat again to max but the rudder was completely blocked to the port side and we were making circles.
Then we could see a large male keeping his distance of about 30 meters from the boat keeping on swimming circles with us.
After about 5 minutes they were gone and we heard that they have attacked 2 other boats 2 miles from us near the coastline.
We needed to be towed in.
Orca behaviour:
They were just swimming next to the boat and now and then you could feel them hitting the rudder. If I put my hand out next to the boat I could almost touch them I think.
The bigger ones stayed about 30 meters away. Most of them were juveniles I think but everything goes so fast.
Afterwards I think they were there already for about 2 minutes before the effective attack because my depth sounder was behaving strange. sometimes I saw the depth descending to 8m and then back deeper to normal depth and then 2 and 1m.
I could not see them coming because off the sea state at that time. Waves 3,5m and 25kps wind head on.
After on half hour we saw the big male again swimming about 20 meters next to our boat and he stayed for about 5 minutes. If they attacked the boat again I can not say because we were getting a big beating from the waves at that time. I also could not make any pictures or videos off the attack because off the conditions at that time.
We can see now multiple hit markings on the rudder because the antifouling is gone there and there are white spots.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Overall we took between 5-10 hits. Lasting less then 5 minutes. We saw two Orcas heading for the boat off our port bow. Immediately we disconnected the autopilot and steered by hand. Increased engine to maximum revs and started hitting our swim ladder with a heavy steel bar. We have a steel boat with a stainless steel swim ladder welded to the transom.
Within 30 seconds of the sighting we took our first hit. We have a very simple rudder design consisting of a shaft running up from the rudder into a tiller at the cockpit. There are no pulleys or gears. I'd let the orcas push the rudder from side to side. As soon as I felt they stopped pushing I'd get the boat back in a straight line and waited for the next hit.
XXhereThe Cruising Association corresponded with the skipper who authorised us to use the following comments from his Facebook entry;
They were able to push the rudder into a 45° angle before letting go. The force required to push a 1 metre² rudder into a 45° angle whilst water is running against it at 7 knots must be enormous.
Lesson Learnt;Lookout. The reason we still have an autopilot was because we disengaged it before the first hit. Lookout is very important. Obviously you need to be lucky enough for them to surface within sight.
Energy dissipation. The energy of their attack needs to go somewhere. We were able to redirect their energy into turning the whole boat left and right. These forces are huge but a rudder is designed to do exactly that.
Speed and noise. Our speed through the water, noise from the engine and hits on the swim ladder must have made it harder for them to locate the rudder. They were only able to ram us once and not on the rudder but onto the keel. I doubt the rudder would have survived that hit.
Be prepared, we both knew what to do. We had a steel bar ready to go hit the swim ladder.
What would we do differently next time?
Lifejackets. It was dead calm. We had no lifejackets on and there was no time to put them on. Within 30 seconds we were in a high speed battle with the boat listing 15-20° from side to side. Have a lifeline ready on the stern if you expect a crew member to be there hitting the swim ladder.
20M contour; we decided to go offshore for better wind to save 3 days of motoring and staying in marinas. We figured the orca risk was worth the time and diesel saved. Which was stupid. Stay inshore. Take your time. Don’t take more risks than necessary.
Orca behaviour:
It looked like they both started going for the rudder. One swam off very quickly north surfacing right behind the boat.
The second one remained engaged for another 3-4 minutes. We had one very big hit underneath the boat. Definitely not on the rudder. Lifting us up a couple of cm's. We're a 10 ton steel boat. After this big hit the second one surfaced behind the boat and followed the first one up north.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
I was under engine, going around 5knots. I was inside when I heard the first orca hit the rudder. I immediately went full speed in the direction of the coast. The orcas followed me, the only action I tried is to put my metal swim ladder in the water and hit it with a paddle to make some noise. They left 10-15 minutes after but I cannot say if it worked or if half of the rudder was already broken and they didn't have anything left to play with.
Orca behaviour:
Two orcas were swimming on each side of the boat while another was swimming behind and attacked the rudder. Most of the time they head bump the rudder but a couple of time they have probably bitten it as they made the boat turn sharply. After they left and I stopped banging on my swim ladder one came back alone quickly, I restarted with the ladder and they left quickly after.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
We were two boats sailing together around 200..300 m apart. Leading boat was hit first at 00:05 . We were furling the head sail when the attack started. We stopped the boat, however the engine was still running in neutral. There was no time to drop the main sail (I did not want to have crew on the deck during the attack) but at the time of the attack the wind was dropping down to almost zero so the boat was stationery. I deployed sand when heard them around the stern but this had a temporary effect only. They returned almost immediately after the sand dispersed in water. The sound of the fog horn was the most effective to make them go away. I waited a few minutes, went to check the other boat and ordered to go to Cádiz to check the damages.
On our way to Cádiz, at 00:50, both boats were attacked again (36°25.435'N 6°25.007'W). Again the fog horn made them go away.
Orca behaviour:
Attacks was performed without warning. One orca hit the rudder a few times while the other swam around, rubbed against the hull and rammed the boat a few times. The boat has been spun around 360° and they turned their attention to the rudder again. They swam very close to the boat and we could hear them breathing. The rudder was hit a couple of times and they went away to hit the other boat. The whole incident lasted 7-8 minutes.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Engine turned to neutral and 3x firecrackers released
Orca behaviour:
First hit was from behind with no warning. Once firecrackers were released they moved away and stalked us 100-200m away for 4-5mins then they returned and continued battering the rudders. We released 3 more firecrackers and they immediately retreated.
20 mins before the attack, another vessel, a catermaran went past us at close range motoring due east - we were heading west-north-west. 10 mins after our attack we saw the catermaran releasing firecrackers as well so it seems that straight after our attack they sought out another vessel to attack.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
This happened at midnight, seas 2.5 m, rough sea state, going 10 knots boat speed. Was not safe to stop the boat as recommended.
After the first strike which was obvious by the violent shaking of the steering, I proceeded to take my fog horn to the below water hull inner surface. By the time I made it to that position, the Orcas has struck two more times for a total of three times. I saw one of the Orcas as it come up to the water surface on the stern of the boat. I placed the fog horn against the hull surface below the water line (hand held gas fog horn that most people have on their boat) and pressed the leaver a couple of times. I waited to see what would happen and they did not strike again.
We are not sure if this is because we scared them off or because they were done with us. We were very nervous for the next two hours but to our surprised, they did not come back.
Orca behaviour:
We did not see their response other then after our response, they did not come back.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
The biggest rubbed along the hull without giving great blows. The engine was cut and we were equipped with a pinger which aroused interest because the biggest one passed on its back under the boat and stopped at the place where the pinger was installed.>
We put an iron bar in the water and hit it to scare them away. The interaction ended immediately.
Orca behaviour:
The demeanor was calm and rather curious.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
5 minutes before the 2 female Orcas approached our boat we saw a fin of a male Orca some 1,5 nm ahead of us. We immediately changed course to land but 5 minutes later 2 female Orcas were swimming towards our boat from behind, dived about 2-3 boat length from us and went straight to our rudder. We kept on going, didn't change speed nor course, engine running, all instruments on (sails weren't up). There were 4 hard hits on the rudder, one of them turned the boat a little, then they went. Unfortunately we didn't manage to ease the autopilot quickly enough (the reason for the damage on the steering cables we found later).
2 and a half minutes later they came back, dived again and swam behind the boat for some seconds without touching it. But in this situation we threw a firecracker to side of the boat and immediately they left and didn't come back.
We discovered a severe damage of our steering cables but could manage to motor to Barbate without assistance needed.
Orca behaviour:
2 female Orcas approached our boat from behind, dived about 2 -3 boat length behind us and then swam directly to our rudder. All the time they were interacting with our boat they were submerged. They swam right behind our boat and then hit the rudder 4 times. The whole interaction itself (near the boat, touching it) only lasted 20 seconds. Then they left but came back 2,5 min. later. Same behaviour again. After 5 seconds they left because we threw a firecracker into the water.
Because they didn't come out of the water near the boat we couldn't take any picture or video to identify them. The specified time datas are proven by a videoclip though taken by a GoPro which was fixed on the guardrail at the stern (we ourselves kept a low profile).
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, minor - will wait until the end of the season
Comments:
They put the boat head to wind it was a very quick attack. After hammering on the cleats they attacked the second rudder, launching a pinger the killer whales did not return. It was two juveniles and a bigger one.
Orca behaviour:
Violent blow on the rudders otherwise calm.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
We turned off all electronics, stopped engine (running at 1500 rpm), and dropped down the sails. Boat was slowly drifting downwind. We also did some noise (fire crackers) to scare it away. We also put inflatable dinghy in water, but we did it probably after it sailed away- it was no longer seen by us.
Orca behaviour:
It did a few circles around and disappeared after ~5 minutes. No interaction. It looked like she was looking (from different angles) who we were, but she wasn't really interested in us. Most of the time was invisible, so probably was deep underwater.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
We were engine sailing at 4 or 5 knots with the autopilot on when we suddenly got a big bang on port side. It felt as if we had hit a rock. We immediately turned off the engine and autopilot. The orca hit us 3 or 4 times as we threw sand and banged with a hammer on a Steel Rod which we had hanging in the water. It went away but after 5 minutes it returned to bang on the rudder again, maybe 3 times. We banged wildly with the hammer on the Steel Rod and after a few minutes it disappeared. We now had no steering and no wind, the boat was not moving much. Both the main rudder and hydrovane emergency rudder were damaged and not working. Inside the boat the steel metal unit for the cable was broken in 3 parts, the fiberglass around the rudder was cracked and there was a water leak underneath the rudder attachment somewhere. ………..We then got a phone call from Lisbon rescue team asking if we fine or in danger. We told them we had a water leak but were managing to keep it under control when we manually pumped the bilge every 10 minutes.
…………The reporter added the following comments at a later date when contacted by the Cruising Association:"We used the steel emergency shaft and banged on it with a heavy steel hammer. We had beforehand welded on a steel extension. It is therefore 132cm long and has a 90 degree attachment 36cm long. It is hollow.
We only threw a hand-full of sand, bending over to empty the bucket was too dangerous. So I cannot say whether sand helps or not. We had 2 buckets of sand but didn't get to use them.
Orca behaviour:
Attacked the rudder with full power.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
…………On autopilot, medium motoring speed. Getting ready to hoist sails, still in cell phone range, talking to father on mobile device. 4 members on board, 3 on deck, in cockpit. Overcast sky. Bottom side paint Is grey..
The orcas struck without warning.. No circling, blow hole noise, plumes. They came from below and struck port side rudder - instigated by a single "dirty" looking one (the white part was actually greenish- brown). Two other orcas swam 10-15 meters below the thug. The thug immediately came around and hit the same port rudder a second time - about 30 seconds after the initial attack. We were just understanding what had happened from the first hit when the second hit occurred. We immediately initiated an Orca protocol we had rehearsed: Crew 1 - Disengage autopilot - go grab 3x4 foot piece of white fiber board, with 30 for line attached, to drag behind boat ( This never got deployed). Crew 2 - Stop engine. Pour four 1.5 litter bottles of urine over transom. (Urine had ZERO effect). Place boathook in water, bang on it with metal lbilge pump handle (ZERO effect - except I was able to "poke" the thug with the boat hook. This did nothing, the thug merely pushed it away). Crew 3. Open holding tanks - about 15 gallons on starboard and 3 gallons on port. (ZERO effect, the thug swam right through it, undeterred). Grab Ditch bags. Crew 4. Lower sails (already down) spot for orcas, prepare radio call (no need) . The damaged rudder caused the boat to move in a circle. At this time, a second pod of three appeared about 100M away, swimming in a circle around us. After a few minutes, the thug came back for another go at our starboard rudder. I vigorously moved boat hook around the good rudder, banging on it with the handle, to make a metallic sound. I also thrust the pole at the thug as he swam around the good rudder. I did not make any physical contact this time, but did make eye contact. The other two swam below the thug again. After a few minutes of not being able to get to the good rudder, the thug and his gang left. After a few minutes both pods of 3 swam in circles around the boat, about 100M away.
Again, I vigorously banged on the boat hook. After a few minutes, they left for good.
Orca behaviour:
One thug, having dirty skin, causing all damage. The others just swam around.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
Feeling the first hit, the crew lowered the sails (engine was off), started the engine to reverse (difficult due to swell and wind), but it didn't work, orcas kept hitting the boat. There were 2 small orcas and 3 or 4 bigger than the rest.
Did they follow the protocol? Not quite, first they went into reverse and when that did not work they turned off the engine but they didn't turn off the depth sounder.
Did they interact with the orcas? No, but they made noises (hitting objects) to try to scare them, but it didn't work.
Apparent damage, repair required, boat towed.
Delaminated rudder, twisted stock, broken cables and autopilot. Requires repair. It required to be towed.
Orca behaviour:
Of the 6 - 8 killer whales, 1 or two seemed to interact the most, large (they were not the small ones). They were hitting the rudder, they were making big bubbles.
Most of the time the orca that hit the boat swam to the left side, dived to hit (not hit from behind), and returned to the same position and repeated the operation.
The crew also felt bumps on the keel and they think they bit it, because there are some marks on the bottom of the keel, one about 1.5 cm in diameter, which they think are killer whale tooth marks.
A pod of dolphins arrived, the orcas began to vocalize, and after 2 minutes they left.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
……… 3 attacks in total. The first lasting approx. an hour, the second approx. the same, the last approx. 15 minutes. It then took approx. 4 hours to motor sail to shore with the main only (in case the orcas returned) and upwind. Without warning they attacked the rudder (initially felt like hitting drift wood or such like). The plan in case of an interaction was to put the engine in reverse and drop a spinnaker pole into the water and hit it with a hammer. The engine was started within a minute of the first hit. It had no noticeable effect but is only a small (12hp 2 stroke) engine and we made minimal headway, although that is largely due to the rudder being hard over. We could not reverse in a straight line. The orcas still managed to get to the rudder (possibly from the inside of the circular arc we made). I suppose with a more powerful engine going astern would make it more difficult for them to get purchase in the rudder. The whole attack was focused on the rudder. The wind vane trim tab was not touched and it was in fine working order following the attacks (this being only .5m from the aft edge of the rudder), the propeller was also unharmed although it was used to deter them by increasing revs in gear (and noise, it’s a 2-stroke engine). At one point the engine on full whack was stopped in an instant with a thud as one orca must have butted it. The propeller sits only inches from the rudder, but they didn’t try to damage that, nor the propeller shaft log housing, nor the keel. Preventative measures: Engine in astern. Engine ahead. Engine revved in neutral. Engine revved up on the approach of an orca. Spinnaker pole in the water and hit with a club hammer (the hull to a few whacks in the palaver). The rudder stock itself hit with a club hammer (as it protrudes into the water directly where they were). Complete Silence and tried to ignore them. I also shouted …. off a few times, if this counts for attempting to communicate, I don’t know. We considered throwing in flares, but with the sea state they would of drifted away very quickly. We were also very conscious of turning their focused aggression into a more broad attack. No action plan had any noticeable positive or negative affect. As mentioned, they seemed focused on their aim. Going silent and doing nothing seemed to give them free reign to destroy, but that may have only seemed the case, as no attention was focused elsewhere. Doing nothing also felt awful, the feeling that your vessel is being destroyed, and may founder, and you’re doing nothing…. The fact that the attack lasted 3 hours is testament to a well built rudder, but is that a good or bad thing? If it were foam filled the attack would last 10 minutes and there would be less damage elsewhere.
Following the attack (and during) ……………. We aimed for shore as much as we could. Luckily the shore was upwind. Therefore, with the main trimmed in, the vessel naturally went tack to tack that very slowly took us toward the shore. …………. The aim was to get to shallow water before assessing damage. We continually checked the bilge to check if she was taking on water.
Damage…..[description of damage removed]……Note: Emergency tiller was fitted for steerage, but as the orcas came back 3 times, it presents a real danger to those at the helm, as the knock of an orca would easily cause the tiller to break a rib or a wrist. We controlled the stock with a large stillson (monkey wrench if you like) which allowed some steerage and was easy to remove in the event of another encounter.
Orca behaviour:
We counted 4 orcas, but there has been reports of 6 in the region, and there were signs of orcas beneath much before the surfaced ones would of had time to go down, so, we saw 4 (what we presume to be two males, a female and a calf), but there may have been 1-2 more.
They continually rammed, butted and bit the rudder, turning it from lock to lock with intense power and seeming ease. There was the sense that they had full commitment to destroying the rudder, regardless of our action plan. This was one of the longest attacks I’ve heard of and it felt extremely aggressive. Much our our attempts to deter them seemed to encourage more aggression, doing close circles of us, splashing us with their flutes and spraying us from their blow holes. Interestingly, they constantly eyed us. They never came up facing us or facing away; they came up side on, and slowed as their eyes surfaced watching us for a second or two.
It certainly felt as if they were teaching the calf because following a hefty attack, what felt like a light nibble followed.The power was incredible and the whole boat would shake and spin depending on whether they rammed us from behind or the side.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
En route from Ayamonte to Rabat, motorsailing with the starboard engine at around 5.5kts our Dachshund (little sausage puppy) started barking wildly. We felt a vibration through the ship and saw two orcas between the hulls and under the starboard rudder.
We put the engine in neutral, brought the mainsail down with a crash, and threw our pinger in the water. We turned Neil Diamond to full volume and banged as many pots and pans as we could find. Obviously we were a bit stressed. It must have been a sight to see.
The two orcas eventually seemed to lose interest and swam slowly away.. only then did I think about taking a photo!! We decided to reel in our fishing lines and it turns out one was still attached to an Orca! It came loose just as we were about to cut it. Who knows which (if any) of our actions were effective.. but we consider ourselves lucky!
Orca behaviour:
Like dolphins but at the back not the front. Rubbing slightly on a rudder. Turning a bit.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, minor - will wait until the end of the season
Comments:
1st visual contact at 7:30 a.m. local time, of 3 killer whales at the back of the boat, at the level of the 2nd wave at the stern. A few seconds later, noise against the hull. Then 1 killer whale (the biggest, the 2 others were a little behind on its left) came alongside to port along the hull pushed the sailboat, which had the effect of making change course despite the autopilot engaged. This had the effect of flapping the genoa causing them to dive immediately. All this was very fast, leaving no time to initiate the protocol.
Orca behaviour:
Quiet and very calm.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
5th august, 10pm, the light was just starting to dim as the sun had set, when a young adult sized orca jumped across our port bow (dolphin chair) and landed back in the water, we immediately got our other crew up and slowed the boat to assess where they were, we could only see two orcas in total which were now positioned on our starboard stern and closing in towards our rudders. The sea state was 3-4m swells and 30-40knot winds and gusts, so we were uncomfortable to go ‘dead in the water’ with no engines which the Spanish coastguard told us to do. Instead we attempted to outrun the orcas and switch our direction regularly. We also decided to go against ‘protocol’ and bang metal tools against our metal railings and stanchions which seemed to deter them for about 10 minutes. When they returned they carried on trying to get as close to the starboard stern again, so we started to play loud music on a portable speaker, banging pots and pans, and wave black and white striped towels off the stern and after a few minutes they left us alone (during that last interaction the light died out too) so we can’t figure out if our deterrents worked or they got bored of us or the daylight running out made them leave?
Orca behaviour:
The orca that flew over our port bow was quite an aggressive moment, we couldn’t differentiate between the two that chased but one was very determined in coming as close as it could to the starboard stern, they regularly came up for air and to maybe see what we were doing? but as soon as we began banging the pots and pans their behaviour seemed like they flinched from the noise and they pulled away.
Below are extracts from interaction reports where the skipper reported using sand.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
We were two boats sailing together around 200..300 m apart. Leading boat was hit first at 00:05 . We were furling the head sail when the attack started. We stopped the boat, however the engine was still running in neutral. There was no time to drop the main sail (I did not want to have crew on the deck during the attack) but at the time of the attack the wind was dropping down to almost zero so the boat was stationery. I deployed sand when heard them around the stern but this had a temporary effect only. They returned almost immediately after the sand dispersed in water. The sound of the fog horn was the most effective to make them go away. I waited a few minutes, went to check the other boat and ordered to go to Cádiz to check the damages.
On our way to Cádiz, at 00:50, both boats were attacked again (36°25.435'N 6°25.007'W). Again the fog horn made them go away.
Orca behaviour:
Attacks was performed without warning. One orca hit the rudder a few times while the other swam around, rubbed against the hull and rammed the boat a few times. The boat has been spun around 360° and they turned their attention to the rudder again. They swam very close to the boat and we could hear them breathing. The rudder was hit a couple of times and they went away to hit the other boat. The whole incident lasted 7-8 minutes.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Without any warning, the orcas submerged and attacked without delay our stern and the rudder. While the propeller was still moving. We immediately followed the protocol from Orca. First, there was only one Orca that attacked us but soon after the first approach, two more and one baby Orca appeared. After approx. 2 min. we threw 5kg of sand in the water which had an immediate effect on them. They were backing off and soon they left us. 20 min. after the last Orca interaction, we continued on our own. In the port after a diving inspection, we found two major cracks in the rudder that needed to be repaired. By the way we were a Catamaran.
Orca behaviour:
It did not feel like they were attacking us. But they blew air when they started to approach our stern.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Navigation equipment switched off, going reverse for 10 minutes, put some sand under the rudder.
Orca behaviour:
Appeared quickly and immediately went close to the rudder. There was one hit in the rudder. When I started to reverse orcas went away. Interaction lasted about 1 minute.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
We were engine sailing at 4 or 5 knots with the autopilot on when we suddenly got a big bang on port side. It felt as if we had hit a rock. We immediately turned off the engine and autopilot. The orca hit us 3 or 4 times as we threw sand and banged with a hammer on a Steel Rod which we had hanging in the water. It went away but after 5 minutes it returned to bang on the rudder again, maybe 3 times. We banged wildly with the hammer on the Steel Rod and after a few minutes it disappeared. We now had no steering and no wind, the boat was not moving much. Both the main rudder and hydrovane emergency rudder were damaged and not working. Inside the boat the steel metal unit for the cable was broken in 3 parts, the fiberglass around the rudder was cracked and there was a water leak underneath the rudder attachment somewhere. ………..We then got a phone call from Lisbon rescue team asking if we fine or in danger. We told them we had a water leak but were managing to keep it under control when we manually pumped the bilge every 10 minutes. …………The reporter added the following comments at a later date when contacted by the Cruising Association: "We used the steel emergency shaft and banged on it with a heavy steel hammer. We had beforehand welded on a steel extension. It is therefore 132cm long and has a 90 degree attachment 36cm long. It is hollow.
We only threw a hand-full of sand, bending over to empty the bucket was too dangerous. So I cannot say whether sand helps or not. We had 2 buckets of sand but didn't get to use them.
Orca behaviour:
Attacked the rudder with full power.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
As we have a keel hung rudder made of inox (stainless steel) and a long keeled sailing boat (Colin Archer) made of concrete (20 ton) we had an idea how to act in case of an interaction. On our boat the propeller is located very close to the rudder. Therefore we started the engine and went by motor (motorsailing) when we saw the 3-4 orcas coming. Just before we got the engine and propeller running - we heard a ”bang” from the rudder when it got hit by an orca. After a few seconds a second hit on the rudder came. At this point the captain onboard started to pour fine-grained sand (from beach) on the top of our rudder. Now We had both the propeller running and sand to disturb the orcas with. We then saw two orcas leaving (they were 3-4 when they came) and no more interaction/hit was made after this.
We kept an eye over the sea but couldn’t see them anymore. Total time we had them around us was maybe 2 minutes. No damage that we know about (will take the boat up on the hard tomorrow). All the time we had the autopilot connected, no damage to that either.
For us it seems the orcas lost interest very quickly. It might have been because of;
1. The rudder was huge and made of stainless steel
2. Our big propeller was running very close to the rudder (30 cm)
3. We poured sand over our rudder and maybe the orcas didn’t like this. It seemed they stayed away when we did this (we did not throw sand on them, we just poured sand on our rudder and let the sand drop into the sea. We do not want to harm them ).
We can not for sure say why they so quick lost the interest, But we believe it could have been 1 or 2 or maybe all three reasons as we described above.
Orca behaviour:
See above.
Below are extracts from interaction reports where the skipper reported that they continued sailing/motoring.
When reading these comments take note of whether damage happened before the boat accelerated away (although not always apparent from the report).
FROM AN ARTICLE IN YACHTING WORLD BY KATIE STICKLAND 30 July 2024
(extracts reproduced with kind permission of Yachting World and the skipper of the yacht)
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
The yacht sank in the Strait of Gibraltar
Comments:
"I went up on deck, and all of a sudden, I heard a crunch, and it sounded like I’d hit a rock. I was probably about five miles out so it was unlikely to be a rock and there was nothing on the charts.
"I took the boat off auto and just took the wheel for a sec. And as I took the wheel, I felt the rudder go, and I heard the noise again. I thought, Geez, that’s not a rock. I thought maybe a rope had wrapped around the prop, but then I looked off the back of the boat, and there were two fairly young orcas, not quite fully grown."
[The skipper] said he followed the orca encounter advice: he let go of the wheel, tried to outrun the orcas and put the boat in reverse, all to no avail.
"They just didn’t let up. I know there is advice to completely stop the boat but I didn’t feel comfortable with that, although it wasn’t long before we couldn’t go anywhere because the rudder was broken."
[The skipper] said he threw pingers and firecrackers into the water.
"They took no notice whatsoever," ……….."After 40 minutes of trying to outrun them, putting the boat in reverse, they had disabled the rudder. That is when I saw two very big orcas sitting off the boat, around 10-15m away from the other three.
"There were five of them just slamming into the side of the boat and one of them was hitting the keel as well;
"The orcas continued to hit the boat’s hull until it cracked amidships.
"I saw water coming in from the starboard side of the boat, but I couldn’t pinpoint the source, which I believe was behind the cooking and fridge unit on the boat."
By the time the Spanish rescue boat had arrived, the yacht was already half-submerged."The captain of the boat asked permission to come onboard to see if he could save the boat, but he said there was just too much water to pump; she could not be saved. I saw the orca when I first spotted the rescue boat and then didn’t see them again. I can only assume the loud engine noise meant they cleared off."
[The skipper] said he was surprised by the ferocity of the orca encounter, although he said the Coastguard were less surprised.
[The skipper] says in hindsight he would not have done the voyage. He would also have stopped the boat immediately and turned everything off as soon as the orca encounter began.
The Cruising Association requested further detail from the skipper who provided the following clarifications:
When motoring away I got up to 8 knots for about 15 minutes and they continued to hit the rudder; I had to be careful as force on wheel would break your arm when they hit. I tried reverse for about 10 minutes both in a straight line and circle. They continued to attack rudder for the duration of the attack even once steering was broken. They hit the rudder when reversing I did not try to reverse once rudder was disabled. Structural damage was after rudder was broken they seemed to be hitting keel and midships, it felt like they gave up on keel and went to push boat and slam boat sideways.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
We were motoring with the autopilot and we felt two shocks. So we immediately stopped the engine and the autopilot. The orcas circled around for 15 minutes but didn't touch the boat again.
Orca behaviour:
We think we were mostly in their way. As soon as we stopped we didn't feel a thing.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Motoring astern, while being pushed in circles - after contact with Tarifa Radio motoring quickly in that direction, orcas followed for about 2-5 minutes, then leaving.
Orca behaviour:
Orcas suddenly appeared just aside the boat and looked at us. After we recognized them, they quickly dived and attacked. Pushed us in circles, going for the aft of the boat (rudder). Approximately every 10 seconds a good hit.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
I did not see them coming at first. I noticed them because my steering wheel did strange things and then I saw a female orca next to the boat on starboard site and other ones on my port side. I stopped the autopilot and took the steering wheel softly in hand and slowed the boat down. There I could feel at least 4 more hits on my rudder.
My wife took a steel pipe and start hitting the emergency rudder pin to make noise. We tried to move away and I speeded up the boat again to max but the rudder was completely blocked to the port side and we were making circles.
Then we could see a large male keeping his distance of about 30 meters from the boat keeping on swimming circles with us.
After about 5 minutes they were gone and we heard that they have attacked 2 other boats 2 miles from us near the coastline.
We needed to be towed in.
Orca behaviour:
They were just swimming next to the boat and now and then you could feel them hitting the rudder. If I put my hand out next to the boat I could almost touch them I think.
The bigger ones stayed about 30 meters away. Most of them were juveniles I think but everything goes so fast.
Afterwards I think they were there already for about 2 minutes before the effective attack because my depth sounder was behaving strange. sometimes I saw the depth descending to 8m and then back deeper to normal depth and then 2 and 1m.
I could not see them coming because off the sea state at that time. Waves 3,5m and 25kps wind head on.
After on half hour we saw the big male again swimming about 20 meters next to our boat and he stayed for about 5 minutes. If they attacked the boat again I can not say because we were getting a big beating from the waves at that time. I also could not make any pictures or videos off the attack because off the conditions at that time.
We can see now multiple hit markings on the rudder because the antifouling is gone there and there are white spots.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Overall we took between 5-10 hits. Lasting less then 5 minutes. We saw two Orcas heading for the boat off our port bow. Immediately we disconnected the autopilot and steered by hand. Increased engine to maximum revs and started hitting our swim ladder with a heavy steel bar. We have a steel boat with a stainless steel swim ladder welded to the transom.
Within 30 seconds of the sighting we took our first hit. We have a very simple rudder design consisting of a shaft running up from the rudder into a tiller at the cockpit. There are no pulleys or gears. I'd let the orcas push the rudder from side to side. As soon as I felt they stopped pushing I'd get the boat back in a straight line and waited for the next hit.
The Cruising Association corresponded with the skipper who authorised us to use the following comments from his Facebook entry;
They were able to push the rudder into a 45° angle before letting go. The force required to push a 1 metre² rudder into a 45° angle whilst water is running against it at 7 knots must be enormous.
Lesson Learnt;
Lookout. The reason we still have an autopilot was because we disengaged it before the first hit. Lookout is very important. Obviously you need to be lucky enough for them to surface within sight.
Energy dissipation. The energy of their attack needs to go somewhere. We were able to redirect their energy into turning the whole boat left and right. These forces are huge but a rudder is designed to do exactly that.
Speed and noise. Our speed through the water, noise from the engine and hits on the swim ladder must have made it harder for them to locate the rudder. They were only able to ram us once and not on the rudder but onto the keel. I doubt the rudder would have survived that hit.
Be prepared, we both knew what to do. We had a steel bar ready to go hit the swim ladder.
What would we do differently next time?
Lifejackets. It was dead calm. We had no lifejackets on and there was no time to put them on. Within 30 seconds we were in a high speed battle with the boat listing 15-20° from side to side. Have a lifeline ready on the stern if you expect a crew member to be there hitting the swim ladder.
20M contour; we decided to go offshore for better wind to save 3 days of motoring and staying in marinas. We figured the orca risk was worth the time and diesel saved. Which was stupid. Stay inshore. Take your time. Don’t take more risks than necessary.
Orca behaviour:
It looked like they both started going for the rudder. One swam off very quickly north surfacing right behind the boat.
The second one remained engaged for another 3-4 minutes. We had one very big hit underneath the boat. Definitely not on the rudder. Lifting us up a couple of cm's. We're a 10 ton steel boat. After this big hit the second one surfaced behind the boat and followed the first one up north.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
We were approx 40nm north of Bilbao crossing Biscay from La Rochelle in +1000m depth. Spotted what we thought were dolphins in the distance. As they got closer they started to circle the boat. This is when I saw they were orca. (2 females) They then approached us at rapid speed, swimming under the stern and emerging either side of the rudder before circling again. They did not make contact. We accelerated away but no further measures were needed.
Orca behaviour:
2 females circled the boat before swimming under the stern and circling again.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Three orcas rammed the boat multiple times on both hulls. I kept going. No deterrent was used. It is a catamaran with propellers behind the rudders. Just increased engine revs.
Orca behaviour:
Three orcas rammed the boat multiple times on both hulls. The attack was without warning, the crew on watch did not notice them coming. One of the orcas went between the hulls from astern, following the boat with evident intention to get to the starboard rudder. Tried a few times getting closer and after a few attempts gave up. All three went away and were seen heading in the direction of Cabo de Trafalgar. They were most likely juveniles or juveniles with a female, however I am unsure. The whole incident lasted 10-12 minutes.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
After the hit I accelerated and the orca was gone. I noticed something floating behind so I went to shallow waters and dove in to discover a piece of rudder missing
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
I was under engine, going around 5knots. I was inside when I heard the first orca hit the rudder. I immediately went full speed in the direction of the coast. The orcas followed me, the only action I tried is to put my metal swim ladder in the water and hit it with a paddle to make some noise. They left 10-15 minutes after but I cannot say if it worked or if half of the rudder was already broken and they didn't have anything left to play with.
Orca behaviour:
Two orcas were swimming on each side of the boat while another was swimming behind and attacked the rudder. Most of the time they head bump the rudder but a couple of time they have probably bitten it as they made the boat turn sharply. After they left and I stopped banging on my swim ladder one came back alone quickly, I restarted with the ladder and they left quickly after.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Pressure on the rudder was the main behaviour. We made for shore but got repeatedly spun around. We tried speeding up, but no change in behaviour. We did not try going into reverse. Our rudder is damaged, with part of it missing, but got us to Gibraltar. Autohelm is badly damaged, although was not in use when the orcas attacked. Our boat is a Swan 391.
Orca behaviour:
4 orcas, but I think most interaction came from 2. It was Coordinated with often two attacking at a time and was persistent. Mostly on rudder pushing boat in circles. A few collisions with the hull. Lasted 45 minutes. No damage to the hull.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
The encounter took place 1 hour after sunset. the first indication was the wheel moving violently and Valent veering off course. Whilst there was a remaining bit of twilight, we did not see any Orcas before we felt the wheel being knocked. After that we saw them quite clearly. I took over hand steering after the first hit and felt the occasional knock. For 5 minutes the Orcas swam alongside the boat, sometimes diving back down under. After 5 mins we had some violent hits on the rudder. Then a few more minutes of swimming alongside. The stayed very much towards the aft end of the boat. After around 10 minutes the Orcas left. After another 5 minutes I went below to fix and to prepare a radio report. Whilst getting my information together the Orcas returned and we took some big hits to our rudder area. We were on autohelm for the first hit and then I was hand steering. The second interaction only lasted a few minutes but was more violent.
During the first encounter we tried pumping out the black water tank that had been prefilled with a bleach solution. This was not effective and if anything provoked some of the hits. During all of the encounters we continued to motor sail and did try to close land. The engine was running and engaged the whole time and we had just the mainsail up.
Orca behaviour:
Aggressive targeting of the rudders.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Had them very close, quite a large pod checking us out from many sides. Were under motor, and went immediately to full throttle around 8.5/9 knots and tried to get a bit parallel to the waves. They left, came back 5-10 minutes later, checked us out again. Then ultimately left after around 20 minutes without “attacking” us.
EDIT:- The reporter advised that the yacht is a catamaran with rudders aft of the propellers, and that the orcas did not swim very close to the rudders, observing the boat from a few metres away.
Orca behaviour:
Checking us out, first just behind us - then went further away and came back from several sides with further distance. When they came back, one orca very close at the back diving down around one boat length behind us. Then ultimately left us.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
5 minutes before the 2 female Orcas approached our boat we saw a fin of a male Orca some 1,5 nm ahead of us. We immediately changed course to land but 5 minutes later 2 female Orcas were swimming towards our boat from behind, dived about 2-3 boat length from us and went straight to our rudder. We kept on going, didn't change speed nor course, engine running, all instruments on (sails weren't up). There were 4 hard hits on the rudder, one of them turned the boat a little, then they went. Unfortunately we didn't manage to ease the autopilot quickly enough (the reason for the damage on the steering cables we found later).
2 and a half minutes later they came back, dived again and swam behind the boat for some seconds without touching it. But in this situation we threw a firecracker to side of the boat and immediately they left and didn't come back.
We discovered a severe damage of our steering cables ………
Orca behaviour:
2 female Orcas approached our boat from behind, dived about 2 -3 boat length behind us and then swam directly to our rudder. All the time they were interacting with our boat they were submerged. They swam right behind our boat and then hit the rudder 4 times. The whole interaction itself (near the boat, touching it) only lasted 20 seconds. Then they left but came back 2,5 min. later. Same behaviour again. After 5 seconds they left because we threw a firecracker into the water.……….. The specified time datas are proven by a videoclip though taken by a GoPro which was fixed on the guardrail at the stern (we ourselves kept a low profile).
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
One or two orcas approached us at first. They surfaced just for a few seconds and mostly kept their distance. After they lunged once towards the boat head on. They disappeared to do what felt afterwards like 'finding reinforcements'. Two crew were up on the fly bridge, two on the Stern... Both perplexed when the boat started jumping to one side then another. We looked behind us and sure enough we could see several black and white huge shapes rolling under the stern. Jolting the boat. No easy fest at 22tones! We hadn't read any advice of what to do so we just put both engines in both hulls full ahead and watched the show with mixed joy and horror, both engine rooms open to see if any damage occurred. Luckily nothing was damaged and they tired themselves out. They swam away abruptly and a little way off into we could see all the fins lined up in a row as they swam away in formation.
EDIT: The crew subsequently reported that the rudders were damaged and required 1 month to repair. This is a catamaran with propellers astern of the rudders.
Orca behaviour:
Playful, determined, rolling onto their backs to bump our rudders.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
I was driving on autopilot as traffic separation scheme was ahead. With a wind of 15-17 knots I had set the mainsail and the jib and was sailing close-hauled with about 45 degrees. The machine ran slowly. I had heard an exhale behind me and then the first hit against the rudder followed. Since I was traveling single-handed, I could no longer salvage the sails. I turned off the autopilot and continued to steer myself. Since I was now in front of the traffic separation scheme, I increased the engine speed and tried to avoid the animals with the wind. I drove snake lines and when the animals were next to me and dived under the hull I drove to the opposite side. This has worked several times. There were three animals. A large one with a length of approx. 8-9m and two smaller ones with a length of approx. 6m. The smaller ones pushed against the rudder several times. Twice I was turned 180 degrees by the big animal at full speed of 8-9 knots. The interaction lasted 25 minutes. It didn't feel like an attack, it was more like training. I didn't notice the damage to the rudder at first because I was able to continue sailing normally. However, the ship had difficulties keeping upwind. I continued to sail to La Linea under motor sails. I only saw the damage to the rudder in port. The rudder is completely broken off in the lower third and half is missing in the rear area.
Orca behaviour:
The animals were visible most of the time under the water surface. The big animal swam with a little distance, the smaller animals usually swam next to the boat in the rear area and then dived under the boat to ram the rudder.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, minor - will wait until the end of the season
Comments:
….. Beneteau 50 ……..we came out through the Gibraltar straight that’s when the interaction happened. We spotted the Orcas maybe a minute before they actually interacted with the boat. Three orcas came close to the boat, and two-three orcas stayed further behind. It was obvious that it was the bigger orcas that stayed behind, and the smaller ones who came close to the boat. At first at least one of them was swimming at the bow. We were four people on board, and at first I was at the bow watching the one there.
Our autopilot was on, but all of a sudden the boat turned 90 degrees, and we realised that one of the Orcas was playing with the rudder. We were motoring and just continued our way. Two orcas were constantly at the stern, with the heads under boat. We could feel them locking the rudder so we couldn't turn, but after a few minutes they swam away.
Everything went quite quickly. We have photos of the orcas which we are happy to share if needed. The autopilot mount on the rudder broke, but that was it. We continued our sail to Cascais. We dove down to check the rudder in the harbour, but there was nothing really to see. ………
Orca behaviour:
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Noticed interaction because of sudden course correction of autopilot. We were all inside. First thought a (prevented) jibe happened as we were sailing downwind with preventer and boom. After third correction we concluded something else was happening and did:
1) disengaged the (electric) autopilot
2) stayed low on the cockpit after first sighting of orcas (after three to five knocks against the rudder)
3) started the engine and put it in forward gear to make the rudder less attractive. As we could not lower the sails (preventer and boom) during an ongoing interaction and reverse was not possible (no effect)
4) turned of the depth sounder. No further interactions/ orcas did not return.
Total interaction took about five minutes. We (two adults two children) were not scared, but the situation was kind of unreal.
Orca behaviour:
As we were inside (autopilot) we did not see orcas coming, nor did we hear them before the first knock against the rudder.
We experienced 3 to 5 knocks against the rudder, before we realised something was not right. When the question arose “could it be orcas” we first sighted them (3 to 4 orca’s) surfacing and breathing close to the aft end and (centre) cockpit of the boat. They were very close to the boat (less than a meter).
They submerged and pushed the rudder several times (in total about 10 to 15 times). After starting the engine one or two orcas ‘hugged’ the hull underwater, slightly lifting/ pushing the boat. Like scratching an itch on its back.
We did not experience the interaction as ‘agressive’, although the orcas pushed hard against the rudder is appears to have been nose and fins/backs only. After disengaging the depth sounder they disappeared without surfacing. We never saw them leave.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
…… on passage from Cascais to Sines…….Approximately 1100 we heard a report of an Orca attacking a 10 meter yacht somewhere ahead. We did not get the exact position but estimated it to be in the middle of the deep water channel. The yacht reported the Orca left them after 15 minutes, they had sustained damage to their rudder ………..1230: In 120 meters depth a large Orca surfaced behind us. I turned 90 degrees to port heading directly for the shallow water and maintained speed, 6.7 Kts under engine alone. The Orca then surfaced very close to our Port aft and came along side its estimated length was 5-6 meters……..At 1205 the Orca made first contact with the hull on the aft port side………..For the next 15 minutes the Orca alternately brushed up against our Port and starboard sides always at the back. We all felt the stern being lifted as it passed under the hull. The contact could be felt as shoves more than blows and the lifting of the hull was only approx. 0.5 meters maximum but then our yacht does weigh 18 Tonnes so that is a lot of weight to shove around. I kept the rudder centralised and didn’t feel any significant impact although with hydraulic steering the wheel does not transmit much if any feedback at the best of times. After approximately 15 minutes the Orca was seen swimming away to the North West.
………….We continued in towards the beach and hugged the coast keeping below 50 meters for the rest of the trip and had no other sightings.
Make: Vagabond 47 Type: Long Keel cutter rigged ketch LOA:15 Meters + Bowsprit LWL: 10.97 meters.
Beam: 4.06 meters Draft: 1.7 meters Displacement:18144 Kg Antifoul: Black.
Orca behaviour:
See above
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
From a report obtained by GTOA:
When we felt the first hit, we knew they were orcas, but we didn’t know how to react, so we decided to continue motoring as before. For the first 20 or 25 minutes we continued moving and changed the direction, moving backward and drawing a sort of circle, but it didn’t work, they didn’t stop.
At the beginning, the orcas started hitting the back (submerged) part of the boat, basically the rudder, but then they hit the hull and the keel. Since the orcas didn’t stop, we called “Salvamento marítimo”, they advised us to stop boat and engine and so we did. Despite of it the orcas didn’t stop and they even intensified the lunges for another 20 or 25 minutes. The interaction lasted 50 minutes in total.
We were able to continue to Vigo, where the boat is now being repaired. They caused damage to the rudder, hull and some parts of the rudder gear.……
Orca behaviour:
There were two orcas, which were not detected before the interaction, because it was dark. Their behaviour was interpreted by the crew as a hunting behaviour. There was one orca on each side of the boat and they took turns to hit it.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
We were downwind 120° to the wind, 2 reefs + staysail, 4 to 5 meter waves, 30 knots of wind. Speed 7 knots. The first hit took place on the rudder, just then we saw 2 killer whales; a large one about 8 meters and a smaller one. We then stopped the autopilot, took the helm and kept the rudders straight so that they had the least grip. at least 4 blows on the rudders the rudders are resistant (aluminium) they plunged under the boat, a first blow on the hull then 2 blows on the wind vane rudder (weighted rudder) that we did not have time to get up the wind vane rudder was torn off (epoxy plywood) we started the engine and just afterwards they left. We don't really know if it was starting the engine or the fin breaking that caused them to go, but we think they only go when something break. We were able to reach la coruña with an operational rudder This all happened in 5 minutes.
Orca behaviour:
The killer whales hit the direct boat without prior interaction, they were deliberately trying to break, they attack the mobile and fragile parts of the boat, it's targeted, for us there was no play on their part. The blows given all took place on the windward and seaward side.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, minor - will wait until the end of the season
Comments:
We were sailing out of the narrow SW course with 25/30 knots from the E and against the current of approximately 2 knots. Boat speed between 10/14 knots sailing at an angle of approximately 160º true wind. Under sail, reefed mainsail and full jib. Port tack. Suddenly we felt a strong blow, we think on the rudder, and the boat luffed sharply in a second. We went from downwind to a closed pitch, approximately 80º real wind and heading S, SE. In the words of the man at the helm, "a blow as if we had run aground." We stabilized the boat at a true 90º wind and continued sailing. Inspecting the stern, we saw the silhouette of an orca in our wake, in the rudder area. It hit a couple more times with less violence than the first time. At that moment, an orca (we think it was a male because of the height of the dorsal fin, very tall and slender, approximately one meter, one and a half meters of fin) began to swim on our port fin at barely two meters, always maintaining its vision and eye level, at the height of the ship where the crew members were, around the rudder. Another orca, we believe that it was smaller in size since it did not come to the surface much, kept tapping the rudder. Hard hits but not enough to significantly alter our course. Our feeling is that the large killer whale was at a height of our length, which allowed it to monitor us and the behaviour of the other smaller one. We continued sailing, since we considered that moving gave us some defence and we did not want to leave our boat at the mercy of the killer whales and they continued hitting the rudder and on occasion the hull. We turned off everything, contacted the maritime salvage company in Tarifa, and continued sailing with the rudder at a fixed angle and steering it by hand. We were sailing there at about 8/9/10 knots. After about 10 minutes, or sooner, we decided to pour gasoline through the stern of the boat, and after a short time, 3/4 minutes we stopped feeling its presence. ………..When things had calmed down, we checked the wheelhouse and apparently there was no damage, so we continued our navigation to Lanzarote (Canary Islands) without incident. Our conclusions are. The orcas were playing and controlling the situation at all times. There was no aggressive behaviour, if they proposed it they would have destroyed the ship quickly. The largest one (6/7/8 meters) was watching and controlling everything. We believe that stopping the ship would have been easy for them, and that they would have more options to bite the rudder, also the wind was very strong and we also considered that maneuvering there with the Orcas below was not safe. When we poured gasoline through the stern they went away, but we don't know if it was a coincidence or if it really had an effect.
Orca behaviour:
The behaviour of the killer whales was playful. Similar to that of the dolphins at the bow of the ship, but at the stern. In addition, the older one gave the feeling that she was watching everything. The little one hit the rudder but not extremely hard, you could keep the wheel with your hands and the course. The big one swam and jumped from time to time. At no time did we feel that they bit or "grabbed" the rudder.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
Boat acceleration: no effect. Engine neutral: no effect. Total motor stop: end of interaction.
Orca behaviour:
Paralyzed, we had no desire to see them, just to hear their breath when they attacked made us want to …………….
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
One young orca. 6-7 interactions under 10 minutes. Two times the boat went 360 degrees. We tried to be quiet but we continued the journey all the time.
Orca behaviour:
Not aggressive pretty calm.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
We were totally surprised and not aware of the fact that there were attacks again of orcas to sailboats. We did not follow the instructions because we did not know them!! Wish we would have known. We left Marina Coruna but no sign or information there. We first felt a bang to the rudder and then saw the orcas. They were with five. Also small/young one. We were not informed about the orca issue at all. First and last time we read about it was in Dutch press in 2020. Hence we were not prepared and not informed about advised response etc. We continued motoring and did some maneuvering. No effect positive or negative.
They stopped when the we stopped moving, after the broke the rudder rod (see below). The engine was still on and in neutral at that point………….
We were repairing the main sail at the moment of the attack and no sail up at the moment it happened. Big waves and engine on. We tried to get away from them but could not. There was another sailing boat just behind us but they left them alone. After banging for 15 minutes our rudder got stuck under the hull. They stayed with us for another 15 minutes but the banging became less. Then a rescue boat arrived and helicopter. The orcas came back. Very scary. After 1,5 hours the towboat came. We could not use our rudder as it was stuck and the steering mechanism to the wheel broke in half due to the force.
Orca behaviour:
They were very aggressive. Swimming around and coming from the front to the back and then diving deeper and banging to the rudder! Very frightening.
2 miles northeast of Islas Sisargas. We were drifting towards the island with no working rudder. The orcas seemed very persistent and push our rudder blade to the left or the right every minute or so for 20 minutes it seemed.
If I am correct, the orcas stopped when the job was done. The rudder rod (between blade and steering wheel) was broken, the blade got stuck against the hull, we stopped moving and left the engine running in neutral.
They shortly came back when the cruz roja (Spanish Emergency Services) and the helicopter was at the scene.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
5th august, 10pm, the light was just starting to dim as the sun had set, when a young adult sized orca jumped across our port bow (dolphin chair) and landed back in the water, we immediately got our other crew up and slowed the boat to access where they were, we could only see two orcas in total which were now positioned on our starboard stern and closing in towards our rudders. The sea state was 3-4m swells and 30-40knot winds and gusts, so we were uncomfortable to go ‘dead in the water’ with no engines which the Spanish coastguard told us to do. Instead we attempted to outrun the orcas and switch our direction regularly. We also decided to go against ‘protocol’ and bang metal tools against our metal railings and stanchions which seemed to deter them for about 10 minutes. When they returned they carried on trying to get as close to the starboard stern again, so we started to play loud music on a portable speaker, banging pots and pans, and wave black and white striped towels off the stern and after a few minutes they left us alone (during that last interaction the light died out too) so we can’t figure out if our deterrents worked or they got bored of us or the daylight running out made them leave?
Orca behaviour:
The orca that flew over our port bow was quite an aggressive moment, we couldn’t differentiate between the two that chased but one was very determined in coming as close as it could to the starboard stern, they regularly came up for air and to maybe see what we were doing? but as soon as we began banging the pots and pans their behaviour seemed like they flinched from the noise and they pulled away.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
This report was obtained by GTOA. [fishing boat]
The boat was stopped with the engine running as the crew had just set the fishing gear. The first they knew of the interaction was when the stern was hit hard. They started to motor away but the hits continued on the side of the boat. They headed towards larger fishing boats to get help. At one point the orcas left and hit another small but newer boat (which wasn’t damaged). However they returned and carried on hitting the sides until they reached larger boats and at that point the orcas went away.
The boat was damaged and more water entered the hull than before. The rudder was lifted. Repairs were required and the boat spent two weeks ashore.
The crew believed that had they been fully laden the boat would have been capsized.
Orca behaviour:
There were four orcas and they all acted. They hit the stern first and then hit the sides. The interaction only ended after 30 minutes as the larger fishing boats were able to assist (this interaction has been recorded as 30-60 minutes).
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
We heard 3 successive shocks on the rudders, spread over less than a minute. We immediately notice a loss of control of the autopilot. The wheel bars are also inactive. The 2 aluminium stock arms connecting the stocks to the rudder are broken. My yacht continues on the same route under sail without any problem. 20 minutes after the damage an emergency tiller was installed at Bd and we continued our journey until Estepona, reached 12 hours later. Departure for the Balearic Islands after 4 days of technical stop.
Orca behaviour:
Not seen or heard, didn't seem aggressive, just came to rub the rudders for a minute.
Below are extracts from interaction reports where the skipper reported that they reversed.
When reading these comments take note of whether damage happened before the boat was travelling in astern (although not always apparent from the report).
FROM AN ARTICLE IN YACHTING WORLD BY KATIE STICKLAND 30 July 2024
(extracts reproduced with kind permission of Yachting World and the skipper of the yacht)
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
The yacht sank in the Strait of Gibraltar
Comments:
"I went up on deck, and all of a sudden, I heard a crunch, and it sounded like I’d hit a rock. I was probably about five miles out so it was unlikely to be a rock and there was nothing on the charts.
"I took the boat off auto and just took the wheel for a sec. And as I took the wheel, I felt the rudder go, and I heard the noise again. I thought, Geez, that’s not a rock. I thought maybe a rope had wrapped around the prop, but then I looked off the back of the boat, and there were two fairly young orcas, not quite fully grown."
[The skipper] said he followed the orca encounter advice: he let go of the wheel, tried to outrun the orcas and put the boat in reverse, all to no avail.
"They just didn’t let up. I know there is advice to completely stop the boat but I didn’t feel comfortable with that, although it wasn’t long before we couldn’t go anywhere because the rudder was broken."
[The skipper] said he threw pingers and firecrackers into the water.
"They took no notice whatsoever," ……….."After 40 minutes of trying to outrun them, putting the boat in reverse, they had disabled the rudder. That is when I saw two very big orcas sitting off the boat, around 10-15m away from the other three.
"There were five of them just slamming into the side of the boat and one of them was hitting the keel as well;
"The orcas continued to hit the boat’s hull until it cracked amidships.
"I saw water coming in from the starboard side of the boat, but I couldn’t pinpoint the source, which I believe was behind the cooking and fridge unit on the boat."
By the time the Spanish rescue boat had arrived, the yacht was already half-submerged."The captain of the boat asked permission to come onboard to see if he could save the boat, but he said there was just too much water to pump; she could not be saved. I saw the orca when I first spotted the rescue boat and then didn’t see them again. I can only assume the loud engine noise meant they cleared off."
[The skipper] said he was surprised by the ferocity of the orca encounter, although he said the Coastguard were less surprised.
[The skipper] says in hindsight he would not have done the voyage. He would also have stopped the boat immediately and turned everything off as soon as the orca encounter began.
The Cruising Association requested further detail from the skipper who provided the following clarifications:
When motoring away I got up to 8 knots for about 15 minutes and they continued to hit the rudder; I had to be careful as force on wheel would break your arm when they hit. I tried reverse for about 10 minutes both in a straight line and circle. They continued to attack rudder for the duration of the attack even once steering was broken. They hit the rudder when reversing I did not try to reverse once rudder was disabled. Structural damage was after rudder was broken they seemed to be hitting keel and midships, it felt like they gave up on keel and went to push boat and slam boat sideways.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Motoring astern, while being pushed in circles - after contact with Tarifa Radio motoring quickly in that direction, orcas followed for about 2-5 minutes, then leaving.
Orca behaviour:
Orcas suddenly appeared just aside the boat and looked at us. After we recognized them, they quickly dived and attacked. Pushed us in circles, going for the aft of the boat (rudder). Approximately every 10 seconds a good hit.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
DESCRIPTION OF INJURY: Steering gear damage caused by killer whales.
CONSEQUENCE: Boat immobilized for repairs.
Description of the event:
Context:
- Situation: sailing under Solent jib alone 28m2.
- Wind: downwind point of sail, broad reach, 6-7 knots apparent wind.
- Sailboat speed: 2-3 knots (2.5 knots recorded on navionics track).
- Visibility: excellent.
I saw the fin of a cetacean on the horizon, initially motionless (strange impression). After a few moments, the mammal, still in the distance, started to move (I had the impression that it was moving away from us, that it was on the same course as us). As the animal moved, I could hear it breathing, and that's how I knew it was an orca.
The skipper took the helm (autopilot off) and altered our course, but the animal was already putting pressure on the rudder. The skipper then asked me to furl the sail and at the same time turned on the engine (2000 rpm in reverse). The boat stops. No shock felt from the cockpit. The animal is still putting pressure on the rudder, the skipper tells me the impression he gets at the helm is that it's hitting the rudder. The skipper increases engine speed (still in reverse). The boat picks up speed and very quickly and the skipper tells me that the pressure on the rudder stops. He drives the boat with the engine still in reverse and asks me to keep an eye on the orcas. I see an orca moving away. I can make out the brown spot on the back of its dorsal fin. Then I see a second blow next to the first. The orcas remain motionless in the distance for a while (blow frequency clearly visible).
Finally, the skipper resumes his normal pace and we return to our original course. In the minutes that follow, an abnormal noise appears in the wheelhouse. From the platform at the stern of the boat, we inspect the rudder and see a clean, white fracture in the rudder blade. The rudder is damaged. The boat must return to a shelter close to a marina that can take her out in order to inspect the damage and carry out a repair.
Conclusion:
It all happened very quickly. The "attack" was precise and directed at the rudder. The cetacean was a long way from us, and in a few minutes the skipper told me that it was in the process of breaking the rudder. I only saw the animal again in the distance, once its "mission" had been accomplished.
Orca behaviour:
A few seconds before the interaction, the skipper saw a dorsal fin that appeared to be that of a male.
During interaction the cetacean was not visible (murky water). The skipper saw large eddies about two meters in diameter at the stern of the boat.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
………..When we first saw the orcas they were well ahead a possible interaction, they were coming from the Moroccan coast exiting towards the Strait. We decided to stop engine and hope they would disappear but instead they turn quickly towards us and the first Orca hit our rudder violently causing the first and single loss of part of the rudder (about 30 cm x 50cm). We decided to motor astern to which they responded by trying to make us turn around. We made at least 8/10 turns ……….The encounter lasted about 20 minutes . We were lucky our rudder is a reinforced one with metal skeleton which prevented more dents or damage and I even think they themselves could have suffered minor cuts as the bottom part of the metal was showing…..However they managed to turn our rudder ( tiller handed) 360 degrees causing damage to the top connection as the force applied was extreme.
Orca behaviour:
Very aggressive, very coordinated. The youngest were just witnessing the scene while adults were constantly trying to turn our boat 360. The first wave of attack was punctuated by a release of air which really left us with the impression they first wanted to intimidate us.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
We were motoring at 6.5 knots with mainsail deployed to smooth the rolling motion of the seas. We sighted the orca only minutes before they attacked. They came straight for us and the start of the interaction was to hit the rudder. This occurred approximately 1415. We immediately went off auto-pilot, put the engine to idle and stowed the mainsail. We then went in reverse at a speed of 3 knots ………… Reverse was not a deterrent. We put the engine in neutral and let it run. We stayed in the cockpit the entire attack. We called a Pan-Pan on VHF at approximately 1430. At approximately 1500, the rudder became disabled. The orca left once the rudder assembly was broken (jammed at 15° left rudder)……..
Orca behaviour:
Single focus intent. They did not bother with any other part of the boat other than the rudder. While it is hard to determine the exact composition of the pod. It appeared that while there were three orca present, the largest one was the most aggressive and forceful with the rudder.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Orca bumped boat 'lightly' - we weren't 100% sure. 20 seconds later a big smash. We tried to get to helm to turn off auto helm but didn't make it before a big push and boat turned to port breaking auto helm chain & cable connecting twin helms. At this point we reached throttle and engaged full astern for 1 minute. We also flushed some waste down the toilets from holding tanks. The rudder blade was snapped 2ft from the hull (6ft rudder blade). Our yacht has a 25t displacement. I'm not sure if the Orcas stopped because there was no rudder left to attack or because of our actions. We then carried on motoring on our course. Whole interaction from start to finish less than 5 minutes.
Orca behaviour:
We only clearly saw 1 orca but there could have been more.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Motoring astern about 15 min , stopping engine, they attacked the rudder hard port to hard starboard and back. After approx 1 hour we started the engine and full ahead to Barbate. The orcas follow us but stopped attacking.Thanks to good weather conditions, we have a well-documented interaction.
Orca behaviour:
One of them (not the oldest) have a kind of tracker (?) .We have videos and photos of parents teaching a young killer whale how to catch a rudder. It didn't seem like their behaviour was aggressive against us.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
We were sailing at 9 knots under pilot. 1st shock. We took everything down and put the engine in reverse. The orcas continued to spin and tap for about 20 minutes then left. We started moving again 20 minutes later. They came back immediately, we reversed, they turned again and hit for 20min. They left, we waited 30 minutes then we started forward again. They came back and hit again. The whole steering system broke. We went backwards for 20 minutes then we stopped the engines. We left under sail only, initially escorted by a Portuguese rescue vessel.
Orca behaviour:
They came from the stern to hit the rudder, from the front brushing the sides of the boat, and sometimes stayed a little on the surface to watch us.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Navigation equipment switched off, going reverse for 10 minutes, put some sand under the rudder.
Orca behaviour:
Appeared quickly and immediately went close to the rudder. There was one hit in the rudder. When I started to reverse orcas went away. Interaction lasted about 1 minute.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
Feeling the first hit, the crew lowered the sails (engine was off), started the engine to reverse (difficult due to swell and wind), but it didn't work, orcas kept hitting the boat. There were 2 small orcas and 3 or 4 bigger than the rest.
Did they follow the protocol? Not quite, first they went into reverse and when that did not work they turned off the engine but they didn't turn off the depth sounder.
Did they interact with the orcas? No, but they made noises (hitting objects) to try to scare them, but it didn't work. Apparent damage, repair required, boat towed. Delaminated rudder, twisted stock, broken cables and autopilot. ……………..
Orca behaviour:
Of the 6 - 8 killer whales, 1 or two seemed to interact the most, large (they were not the small ones). They were hitting the rudder, they were making big bubbles.
Most of the time the orca that hit the boat swam to the left side, dived to hit (not hit from behind), and returned to the same position and repeated the operation.
The crew also felt bumps on the keel and they think they bit it, because there are some marks on the bottom of the keel, one about 1.5 cm in diameter, which they think are killer whale tooth marks. A pod of dolphins arrived, the orcas began to vocalize, and after 2 minutes they left.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
………Around 1pm I noticed the orca breathing about 1000 meters from my boat. there were three orcas on the water surface. after that it was quiet. we were three people on bord and we took up our positions. A person at the urine tank with no solid waste. One person on the radio and one person at the wheel. Around 1:10 p.m. there were four or five orcas behind the boat and the first vibrations on the hull were noticeable. A large orca was right next to the boat, the others surfaced and blew air. After two jolts, the engine was started and reverse gear engaged, the sails turned to the wind, slow walking speed backwards. There was no more vibration for about 10 minutes. there were no orcas on the boat. the engine was turned off. 10 minutes later a single large orca under the boat touched the rudder and bent the detent and bit off the rudder. now the urine tank was opened. There were no more attacks. the boat was no longer steerable. we installed an emergency solution on the bathing platform, which was already screwed on and was installed in 5 minutes. the return trip to la rochelle could be steered by hand. ……….
Orca behaviour:
Only one orca was active, the others just watched. the adult large animals are the ones that attack. if the rudder is defective, all the animals have disappeared.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
We were under sail when we felt the rudder stuck, we didn't have time to do anything else, just lower the sails, start the engine and reverse. We could no longer use the rudder, many attempts to reverse with no result.
Orca behaviour:
The orcas interacted for about 45 minutes, between 4 and 6. They circled the boat and interacted the entire time.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
After the first hit the rudder was stuck in maximum lock. We went full throttle in circles forward for five minutes. The orca kept hitting. Then we went full throttle backwards in circles five minutes. The hits became less and the orca left. I don't know if this was because of going astern or because of realising our rudder is too hard.
Orca behaviour:
Playful, not aggressive.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
Out of the sudden one orca bumped our rudder hard. We’ve switched off the autopilot, lowered the sails and put the motor in reverse while it bumped several times. Then we’ve pulled up the lower part of the rudder (our boat is an aluminium Ovni 32) and it bumped it one or two more times. The damage is a 2cm thick solid aluminium lower part of the rudder bend, a solid stainless steel steering rod bend and an aluminium welded steering stop snapped off.
Orca behaviour:
It blew bubbles just behind the boat and hit within seconds the rudder from port side. It swam off and turn for a new blow more from behind. It had already a bright blue spot on the head from our anti fouling. It repeated this for 4 to 5 more times. It looked like it came to inspect the rudder once more by swimming upside down in a slow pace under the rudder and then lost interest and left. The whole incident was less than 3 minutes. We’ve seen only one orca and got several videos of it.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
3 attacks in total. The first lasting approximately an hour, the second approximately the same, the last approximately 15 minutes…... Without warning they attacked the rudder (initially felt like hitting drift wood or such like). The plan in case of an interaction was to put the engine in reverse and drop a spinnaker pole into the water and hit it with a hammer. The engine was started within a minute of the first hit. It had no noticeable effect but is only a small (12hp 2 stroke) engine and we made minimal headway, although that is largely due to the rudder being hard over. We could not reverse in a straight line. The orcas still managed to get to the rudder (possibly from the inside of the circular arc we made). I suppose with a more powerful engine going astern would make it more difficult for them to get purchase in the rudder. The whole attack was focused on the rudder. The wind vane trim tab was not touched and it was in fine working order following the attacks (this being only .5m from the aft edge of the rudder), the propeller was also unharmed although it was used to deter them by increasing revs in gear (and noise, it’s a 2-stroke engine). At one point the engine on full whack was stopped in an instant with a thud as one orca must have butted it. The propeller sits only inches from the rudder, but they didn’t try to damage that, nor the propeller shaft log housing, nor the keel. Preventative measures: Engine in astern. Engine ahead. Engine revved in neutral. Engine revved up on the approach of an orca. Spinnaker pole in the water and hit with a club hammer (the hull took a few whacks in the palaver). The rudder stock itself hit with a club hammer (as it protrudes into the water directly where they were). Complete Silence and tried to ignore them. …………. No action plan had any noticeable positive or negative affect. As mentioned, they seemed focused on their aim. Going silent and doing nothing seemed to give them free reign to destroy, but that may have only seemed the case, as no attention was focused elsewhere. Doing nothing also felt awful, the feeling that your vessel is being destroyed, and may founder, and you’re doing nothing…. The fact that the attack lasted 3 hours is testament to a well built rudder, but is that a good of bad thing? If it were foam filled the attack would last 10 minutes and there would be less damage elsewhere………………………………………………………………..(long report)
Orca behaviour:
We counted 4 orcas, but there has been reports of 6 in the region, and there were signs of orcas beneath much before the surfaced ones would of had time to go down, so, we saw 4 (what we presume to be two males, a female and a calf), but there may have been 1-2 more.
They continually rammed, butted and bit the rudder, turning it from lock to lock with intense power and seeming ease. There was the sense that they had full commitment to destroying the rudder, regardless of our action plan. This was one of the longest attacks I’ve heard of and it felt extremely aggressive. Much our our attempts to deter them seemed to encourage more aggression, doing close circles of us, splashing us with their flutes and spraying us from their blow holes. Interestingly, they constantly eyed us. They never came up facing us or facing away; they came up side on, and slowed as their eyes surfaced watching us for a second or two.
It certainly felt as if they were teaching the calf because following a hefty attack, what felt like a light nibble followed. The power was incredible and the whole boat would shake and spin depending on whether they rammed us from behind or the side.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
One orca. motored in reverse in tight circles. did not deter orca. It dived several times holding on to the rudder. After many dives it swam away towards another yacht.
Orca behaviour:
Aggressive.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
…………We were sailing with 7 knots in 160 m water when the first attack happened. We dropped sails and motored backwards in the direction of shallow water. 40 min later the second attack happened in 34 m water. We are ok and the boat also our boat is 10,39 m long ……….
Orca behaviour:
Like playing with the boat.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
Sails down, reversing full throttle, first in straight line after the rudder was attacked in circles.
In the mean time made lots of noise with plastic pipe connected with a horn. They came back 3 times in a hour while attacking 2 other nearby boats.
Noise seems to have no effect, reversing in circles may have reduced the damage.
Orca behaviour:
We saw them coming and they immediately went for the rudder. After that attack we were reversing and the orcas were calculating alongside how to attack. It seems a bit more difficult for them but still we felt several hits.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
From a report obtained by GTOA:
When we felt the first hit, we knew they were orcas, but we didn’t know how to react, so we decided to continue motoring as before. For the first 20 or 25 minutes we continued moving and changed the direction, moving backward and drawing a sort of circle, but it didn’t work, they didn’t stop.
At the beginning, the orcas started hitting the back (submerged) part of the boat, basically the rudder, but then they hit the hull and the keel. Since the orcas didn’t stop, we called "Salvamento marítimo", they advised us to stop boat and engine and so we did. Despite of it the orcas didn’t stop and they even intensified the lunges for another 20 or 25 minutes. The interaction lasted 50 minutes in total.
We were able to continue to Vigo, were the boat is now being repaired. They caused damage to the rudder, hull and some parts of the rudder gear.
The crew were not fishing with a line from the stern.
Orca behaviour:
There were two orcas, which were not detected before the interaction, because it was dark. Their behaviour was interpreted by the crew as a hunting behaviour. There was one orca on each side of the boat and they took turns to hit it.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, minor - will wait until the end of the season
Comments:
5 to 7 orcas came very quickly and directly to the boat from 200m away, when we first noticed them. They swam underneath without hitting the boat for 20-30 seconds, while we were losing way and preparing to reverse. First big hit to the rudder immediately afterwards, then pushed the boat around in 2 complete circles while propeller was in reverse. We started to gain way in reverse, then were hit again hard on the rudder. We then defended ourselves with loud noises and the orcas immediately left the boat, staying 100m astern for 2-3 minutes. We made another noise and they left and were not seen again. We continued motoring astern slowly for 30 minutes while we checked for damage, then made maximum speed to port in case of developing problems.
Orca behaviour:
Orcas seemed very calm and we did not feel they were aggressive in their movements. They were very close together underneath and beside the boat, rubbing against each other, especially the calf. No jumping or spy hopping was seen.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
5 or 6 orca's followed us and attacked the rudder. We lowered the sails and made contact with 112 and asked for advice. They told is that we could do nothing, but we could try to move astern. We started the engine and tried to move backwards. Orca's still attacked us. We did this for about 15 minutes. At some point, the rudder did not work anymore; later we saw that it was damaged badly. Water started to pour into the boat.
The orcas followed the boat, dived under it and pushed hard against the ruder. This lasted for more than 30 minutes.
Orca behaviour:
The orcas followed the boat, dived under it and pushed hard against the ruder. This lasted for more than 30 minutes.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
……….. The orcas first attacked another yacht and they called us. We were 500m away from them and started to head towards land. A few minutes later the orcas attacked us as well. One orca went direct for the rudder, but did not manage to break it. Then it was quiet for some minutes. We started to go backwards and take our sails down. (Still towards land). Then after less then 5 minutes the orcas were back, and it was several 5 at least. As recommended we stopped the engine and shut off everything. Then the orcas really started to attack. They broke off our steering and we had no control over the rudder anymore. This attack lasted for at least 20 minutes. We started to go backwards after 10 minutes and went in circles. This seemed to make them attack less. After more then 20 minutes they went off and the rescue boat called to pick us up since we were the closest to land and shallow water. After us the orcas attacked 2 more sailing vessels.
Orca behaviour:
They went in for the rudder really hard. Multiple times. They were circling around the boat and attacked again and again. They did not go far during the attack, we could see all the time. They were jumping around and we’re really close to the back of the boat the whole time.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Different group than the day before (but i was very surprised by the location - middle of the bay, nowhere near the shelf), 6-7 more of a uniform size. Saw them coming towards me a mile off, downwind from the north (by now i was onto it and they cant help it travelling at 30kts making massive splashes), presumably hunting in a fanned out pattern. Within a minute or two of the first one arriving his mates caught up but i already dropped sails and was motoring astern with the rudder locked and a cup of coffee in hand. They swam about the bow for a few minutes (probably discussing what to do haha) and then continued in a SE direction.
Orca behaviour:
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Same group as earlier in the day, approached from upwind, where probably hunting in a fanned out pack as it took a minute or two for the others to arrive once the scout reached me. I dropped sails, motored astern with the rudder locked as earlier in the day and while some soon got going downwind again some (i think a mother and her youngster, just guessing based on size) circled the boat for a good ten minutes and disappeared. When i thought they where gone i took the boat out of gear and within a few seconds the mother and her youngster came from from behind and raced towards me. It looked and felt like the mother was guiding the youngster and showing him what to do. Pretty scary it was.
Orca behaviour:
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Group of 6-8, half of them youngsters, other half full size, bumped the boat and made for the rudder till i managed to drop the sails, pull the windsteering paddle up, start engine and reversed the boat. They then swam a meter or two off the bow for another 10 minutes or so.
Orca behaviour:
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
1st shock I stopped the engine then lowered my sail then sent a message to the vhf without any real audible response, I switched off all the instruments, as the shocks continued I put the reverse gear back on fully and circling without effect, at one point I lost my helm………. At this moment I stopped everything and started a survival bag by gathering paper etc. ..,,, they continued to jostle and regularly attack from the rear, with each shock I checked if I had no sound of water coming in. After an hour they left.
Orca behaviour:
Aggressive.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, minor - will wait until the end of the season
Comments:
I think what stopped them was the reverse engines.
Orca behaviour:
Constantly attack the helm, aggressive.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Saw orcas approaching, immediately alerted crew. Started engine in reverse as one orca swum 1m off our stern. When gaining headway backwards the orcas left. No physical contact with the boat.
Orca behaviour:
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
The incident itself happened similar to all the other stories. Started with feeling some slight shakes within the boat followed by the orca appearing in very small distance close to our boat.
Orca behaviour:
The orca circled the boat and from time to time attacked from the stern towards the rudder and hit this about 6-7 times very strong. Damage in the steering cable and rotation of the rudder triangle happened.
After about 8 minutes of time he left us. First we tried to not do anything, after 2-3 hits we tried to reverse that didn’t help either, the last few attacks we always went full speed forward when we saw him diving towards the rudder. At least there after he left.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
The vessel is an old fishing boat with 90 years old that now operates in tourist sea with customers on board in search of dolphins when we heard on the radio that there was a group of orcas nearby, we made an approach where 3 of our colleagues were and we kept the distance 100 meters when the 3 orcas approached, I started filming at the moment when two of the orcas sank in front of us and emerged a little further in front. One of them disappeared when I felt a light touch on the tiller.
I start the reverse gear slowly and suddenly I feel a huge hit again on the tiller when I increase the speed of reverse gear and direct the camera to the stern of the boat in search of the Orca and I see it coming out of the stern of the boat to escape the propeller. Fortunately I have the Video to prove the action taken. I continued in reverse and the group followed in our pursuit for a few minutes until it gave up. If I had turned off the engine I don't know what would have happened...
Orca behaviour:
When I arrived at the place where my colleagues were with the orcas they seemed to be calm as my colleagues had been with them for some time, always taking care not to have them in their stern. But with my approach despite the distance, they headed towards our vessel. The initial touch was a small touch so I assumed it was curiosity and it was only because of the violence of the second touch that I decided to carry out the escape with the reverse gear. With the departure of the stern the 3 orcas started in pursuit at great speed until they gave up. and continued their march south.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
………At 10.40 we spotted three Orca two approx 7m in length and a smaller Orca around 5m in length approaching closely to our stern and interacting with the rudder we were sailing around 7-9 knots we dropped sail and the Orca then continued interacting with the rudder for 30/40 minutes pieces of the rudder were broken free and the engines were switched on one in forward the other in reverse and then alternated to try to deter them attacking saildrives Once engines were started the Orcas stood off some 20 m from the boat as if they were waiting for the engines to stop. After 15 minutes they then disappeared . On inspection one rudder was destroyed completely the other showed deep scratches but remained mainly intact . …………….
Orca behaviour:
Constantly grabbing and moving rudders then swim of slightly allowing other Orca in. No ramming of hull.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
Lowering the sails then reverse with the engine to stop the speed for 5/7 minutes with no effect on the killer whales.
Orca behaviour:
Quiet approach looked like they were playing. They crunched the rudder several times. A few headbutts in the hull at the start of the attack. …………
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
sailing using sails, 3-4 knots 3-5 m/s wind. heading for Brest 90 degrees. 2 - 3 orca were turning the boat around, and pushing and biting the rudder. they were not attacking the rudder on my windpilot ( windrudder), so i raised it above the water. I try to keep the rudder in the middle, without force, so it won’t bang onto full rudder.
Try to put chlorine in the toilet, but they were pushing the boat backward, so i try to drop by drop chlorine in the water behind the boat.
Next i start the engine and try to go backwards, and after 1-2 minutes they stopped. and disappear. it took 15 minutes at all.
Orca behaviour:
Orcas were swimming around the boat. and they attacked the rudder mostly from directly behind, but also from the sides, but most they came from behind. They were breathing heavily ( i don’t know how the breathe normally, but i could hear it when i was down below ).
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
We were following another sail boat from Portimao to Gibraltar. The plan was to travel as close as possible to the cargo shipping lanes.
At around 7am, the boat in front of us ………. called me to say that 3 orcas started swimming around his boat and that on two occasions, he felt they were hitting to hull or the rudder. It lasted 5 minutes because he put his engine into reverse and they suddenly left. He told me to keep a good watch. 15 minutes later, when I passed the same spot where he had the interaction, I saw two orcas coming from my starboard side and coming under my boat . I immediately turned my second engine on and started going astern as fast as possible and in rounds for about 5 minutes. I never felt any hit and they completely disappeared from the first time I saw them. And that was it… they never came back…
Orca behaviour:
They appeared from my starboard, went under the boat and disappeared.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
The two orcas were nearby a buoy and as soon as they saw us, they came like a bullet. We stopped the boat and started the engine on reverse at full power. After 10 minutes hitting the boat very strongly, they ran away without damaging the rudder.
Orca behaviour:
The two orcas (one of 6 meters and other of 3-4 meters) bumped the hull of the boat during 10 minutes and then swam away.
Below are extracts from interaction reports where the skipper reported stopping the boat.
(NOTE – activity on deck when the boat is stopped can retain the orcas’ interest. Also when reading take note of whether damage happened before the boat was stopped (although not always apparent from the report)).
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
We were warned by a boat of an orca that had interacted with two boats on our route.
We were motoring under autopilot.
We felt a blow coming from astern, at rudder level, so I quickly cut the engine, as well as the fridge.
The killer whale had time to make two more blows, then set off again towards the north-west.
The interaction lasted less than 30 seconds, and our rudder was not damaged.
It may have been cutting the engine that put it off, because after we had cut the engine, it put in one last stroke and left. The interaction was too short to be sure it was directly connected
Orca behaviour:
The hits were spaced 4-5 seconds apart, coming from behind
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
Interaction lasted around 45 minutes. Orcas banged the boat around and eventually torn off the rudder. Some rudder recovered with teeth marks! Crew tried to deter by making some noise when it was clear the Orcas were not going to leave. Up to that point they just played dead.
Orca behaviour:
Aggressive was the general consensus. Very scary for all concerned.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
We were motoring with the autopilot and we felt two shocks. So we immediately stopped the engine and the autopilot. The orcas circled around for 15 minutes but didn't touch the boat again.
Orca behaviour:
We think we were mostly in their way. As soon as we stopped we didn't feel a thing.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
The animals were right next to the hull, but left us alone. I used these tactics:
1) Planned the passage of the area for daylight hours.
2) Unhooked the wind autohelm.
3) Safety equipment checked, epirb checked, life raft etc. For everyone: life jackets.
4) 3 crew members each had a sector to monitor "Permanent Sharp look out". 4th crew member responsible for everything else. Assign tasks crystal clear!
-> We therefore located the animals early on at a distance of 200-300 metres (from water spout). They came from aft.
Orca behaviour:
The first time they appeared from stern. The animals were curious and close, but did not touch the boat.
After we started the engine again, an animal raced straight towards us at high speed - from about 90° port side. speed directly towards us. When we switched o" the engine again immediately The animal dived down, apparently circled us a few times and then lost interest.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
While motor sailing with a speed of 7/8 knots, a first killer whale arrived from the left and quickly passed under the bow. Then came the other 4/5. I immediately turned off the engine and autopilot and stopped the boat. The killer whales circled the boat, widening their radius more and more, and then disappeared after about 90 minutes.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
We, Sailing Catamaran were on engine doing 6 knots on Automatic pilot and than suddenly a strange courseshake and a ruddersound. Then again. We had anticipated on this. Took off the speed switched of the engines and electronics. The encounter took 15 min. A pod of maybe 5 to 8 animals. A few circling slowly around the boat at a distance of 25 meter and another few slowly making a halfturn ( belly up) and biting the rudder. As said after 15 min they left
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, minor - will wait until the end of the season
Comments:
As we encountered the orca, we stopped the engine completely. We waited till the orca lost interest and found another sailing vessel following us. That ship also came in contact with the orca and it tuned 90 degrees around. We waited about 45 Minutes to make sure the orca was gone. We lost our wind pilot rudder, furthermore no damage!
Orca behaviour:
Swimming around a lot.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
In 0.5nm distance to S/Y ……. we received their PAN PAN. At the same moments we saw 1 Orca heading towards our boat.
We put the thrust on idle, Autopilot off.
Ca. 1 Min later we saw the Orca about 100m away approaching our boat. Shortly after that, we felt one single designated bump on the hull.
After 30 sec. a second designated hull bump happened.
After that the Orca was not seen anymore.
After waiting 5 Min we tested our rudder and found it completely stuck………………… As a catamaran we are still fully able to maneouver and decided to proceed without distress call.
Orca behaviour:
After damaging the Rudder on the other yacht 1 Orca dived directly to our nearby boat. 2 dedicated assertive bumps on our hull blocked the rudder system of our sailing catamaran. After that, the 1 Orca disappeared.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
We followed protocol, attempted to move away after approx 10 minutes but within a few minutes they attacked again. Again turned everything off, sat low & quiet and waited it out. After another 10-15 minutes we unfurled our Genoa and sailed away. ………………….We fortunately appear to have sustained no damage and were able to continue our journey. We are on a 42’ Monohull.
Orca behaviour:
They attacked the rudder.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
standby autopilot. stop engine . drop mainsail. no managed to deter.
Orca behaviour:
no sight of their arrival. suddenly come. light hitting on rudder blade then more and more heavy. running around the boat for about 15 min.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
The orcas attacked the boat directly on the first approach. Maximum 30 seconds from the first sighting to the damage. The fixation of the rudder quadrant broke on our extremely strong build aluminum boat. We take down sails and stopped engine. Attacks up to 5 minutes, than 25 min nothing, than another attack to the drifting boat.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Contacted Tarifa Trafic. Followed their advice and switched the engines off. We took no further actions. Just waited and had some tea.
Orca behaviour:
Agressive, swimming around the boat, under the boat, trying to bite the rudder but without success as we have the props behind them.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
when it happened, I was under autopilot, engine speed 1800 rpm and I was travelling at 7 n. there were three killer whales and they broke the rudder by hitting the boat violently. the pilot switched off, I immediately took the rudder and steered. the boat left direct, heading for the continent at 7 n. then the killer whales started to hit the hulls, because it was a 51-foot trimaran. I called the Cross Gris-nez by telephone, and I have applied the protocol under their advice, cut off any instrument that makes noise, or that emits waves. driver, motor, heating, exterior.. the killer whales did not stop, so I turned off all the lights and let myself drift. After about 30 mm, the killer whales left. The interaction lasted a good 1 hour.
Orca behaviour:
very violent and aggressive
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
Sailing under engine, 1 nm west of Cabo Espichel we saw 3 Orcas coming quickly from west to us and started to push us.
Before we put off the sounder, the engine and put the mainsail down.
We kept quiet and moved only slowly on the boat.
A moment later 2 other orcas arrived. The fist 3 (2 big ones and one smaller) and 2 new (small) pushed us left and right, and as we saw later, the crashed our rudder.
After around 10 minutes of high activity, it become less and finaly after 20 minutes more they left us in direction west (open sea).
After the left us we had been forced to call the ocean rescue by mayday because we could not more navigate with the boat and drifted slowly towards the stoney coast.
Orca behaviour:
3 Orca(2 big; 1 small) arrived from open sea, some minutes later 2 other (small) arrived.
For 10 minutes the pushed us heavy from left to right, than for about 20 minutes more seldom.
At one of the heavy contacts we saw that they "played" with 1 meter of our broken rudder.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
FROM A REPORT OBTAINED BY GTOA:
They were calm and felt blows and saw the orcas. There was no previous sighting of the orcas before they hit the rudder. They notified Salvamento, who told them to turn off engine and electronics. They alerted a nearby ship that circled the boat. After an hour as the orcas did not leave, they started the engine to see if they would leave them behind but the interaction lasted 3hours. On the boat were 4 people and a dog.
Apparent damage, reparation required, boat towed? Broken rudder mechanism. They were towed by salvamar.
Orca behaviour:
Number and behaviour of the orcas observed? It was 4 – 5 orcas, and one was small. The two largest orcas were under the boat, the others were approaching and moving away. There were no other species of cetaceans with them. The two largest hit the ship, the others watched. Explosive bubbles and bumps.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
The pod, or about 8-10 Orcas circled to start with then began coming in, one at a time and hitting the rudder. ~Could not be sure whether it was a deliberate attack on the rudder or to get at the propeller. By the time the engine was off the damage had been done. The Autohelm was damaged and a connecting rod, between wheel and quadrant had been broken.
Orca behaviour:
Hard to say whether they were playing or not. They created a circle around our stern and took it i n turns to come in and hit the rudder. There was one very large Orca, moire than 15 feet in length, two medium sized ones of about 10 feet, and the remainder were smaller. Once the boat was damaged and stopped, sails furled, they left.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
We were motoring off the southern Spanish coast, heading towards Gibraltar, when we were attacked by a pod of six or seven orcas, not far from Barbate. We followed the official guidance, switching off all systems and engines and calling Tarifa Traffic to let them know what was happening. We then waited for the orcas to get bored and depart. The attack lasted approximately an hour, during which time we took no action whatsoever other than to try to capture some of it on video. Unfortunately they completely disabled the steering system of the boat. Both rudders dropped and much of the internal steering mechanism was bent or broken. ……….. awaited the coast guard who towed us in to Tarifa.
Orca behaviour:
The orcas we clearly coordinated in their actions - at times taking it in turns (almost queuing up) to bump the boat, and at others lining up alongside each other and pushing us along. I have a catamaran which has sail drives astern of the rudders. Notwithstanding the fact that the engines were off and the props stationary, the orcas were clearly being very careful to avoid the sail drives in trying to get to the rudders. There was no question that the rudders were their targets. On a couple of occasions they almost got the dinghy (hanging on davits) with tail slaps, but I didn't get the impression that they were specifically trying to get it. I will upload a compilation of video clips I shot during the encounter…….. What the video does not adequately represent though is the sheer force with which they were hitting the boat. Their behaviour was not playful - they were clearly intent on doing damage.,/p>
I saw one calf in the group at the very start of the interaction, but not thereafter.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required (the boat sank)
Comments:
We followed the recommended protocol, the interaction continued but we couldn't maneuver much because one of the killer whales was constantly clinging to the rudder. After almost an hour a leak opened up behind the boat and we sank.
Orca behaviour:
The killer whales circled around the boat and hit the rudder. They took turns grabbing the rudder blade in their mouths and shaking it.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
As soon as we saw the killer whales before the interaction we lowered the mainsail, turned off the engine and made a sécurité call.
The killer whales went straight to the rudder and broke the tip of the rudder and the steering wheel. We didn't start the engine or try to talk them out of it.
Orca behaviour:
Orcs were playful and knew where they wanted to hit. I started with a lot of strength, then after the first effort she played with the debris of the rudder and was more relaxed.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Very fast attack. 3 killer whales attacked the rudders. The attack lasted less than 5 min.
As soon as I felt the first killer whale impact with the rudders, I headed into the wind to lower the mainsail and stop the engine.
Once the engines stopped, they stopped then remained two minutes around the boat, before joining a group of 6-7 killer whales less than 100m away.
Orca behaviour:
They focused on the rudders and nothing else. No jumping, no demonstration to impress. They bent the stocks of the two rudders of our catamaran.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
NOTE - this is CA generated report from the report received of two interactions 6 hours apart by the skipper together with good quality videos of this second interaction posted on Facebook (see report number Inter81 which relates to the first interaction)
The crew dropped and furled sails and the engine was turned off in calm conditions.
On social media the skipper reported that he had turned on the engine and thought about reversing but that this agitated the orcas and they slapped their tails so he played dead instead. This comment may refer to the first interaction 6 hours earlier as the video of this second interaction show the yacht and crew "playing dead", possibly after the experience of agitating the orcas earlier?
The crew were able to sail back to port although repairs are required.
Orca behaviour:
The orcas were seen on video to be calm, with the yacht stationary in light wind and calm sea. Two of the videos showed an orca gently pushing the boat by the rudder and spinning slowly through 360 degrees as it did this, exposing its white belly as it turned.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Once we felt the first hit from orca, I stopped the boat by lowering the mainsail and shutting the motor off. Shuttled the electronics (sounder, autopilot) off and also our lower navigation lights. Kept only a light at top of the mast to signal out position to other boats. Called MRCC by VHF to inform. Then we simply waited without making any noise inside or outside, did not show ourselves to the Orcas and waited until they left. They rammed the rudder and occasionally the centerboard but mostly the rudder. The hydraulic system of the autopilot was damaged. We could continue after waiting 30 min after they left.
It all happened in the night, so I could not get any pictures or video.
Orca behaviour:
Turned around the boat, breathing, diving, attacking the rudder mostly. Where taking their time and did not seem excited.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
As soon as I saw the first fin I cut the engine then lowered the sail which was hoited, I also cut the electricity on board. The four killer whales came straight onto the rudder, there were one or two particularly large killer whales and one small one. The attack lasted at least 15 to 20 minutes, we did not reverse or lock the helm, the killer whales went back and forth, we thought they were leaving but they came back each time. There were three of us on the boat, we didn't do anything except film the killer whales for insurance.
Orca behaviour:
The killer whales directly attacked the rudder. They were butting against the hull of the boat too. On several occasions, two of them moved away but they came back to the charge from the front of the boat. You could hear the sounds coming from the wood breaking under the fangs of the orcs. After about 12 minutes, they managed to break the rudder horizontally (we lost the lower part of the rudder). Right after we saw one of the killer whales "playing" with the rudder, she was nudging it with the tip of her nose. We saw her a second time doing this and she also dived with the rudder. We couldn't find the rudder. Pretty soon after they removed the rudder, they were gone. At the beginning, we saw that they were three to leave then the fourth joined them. We did not see them again afterwards.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
Boat acceleration: no effect. Engine neutral: no effect. Total motor stop: end of interaction
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
we sail along with motor and the main sail up. steering with autopilot. we see 1 orca and then the rudder gets a quick hit. we shut the motor off and take the mainsail down. i hurry and disconnect the autopilot from the rudder quadrant to prevent further damage. after the first hit we hear or see nothing for 20 minutes. we lay completly still in the water. we then decide to start the engine and motor away from the area, but the second the motor is turned on, the attack starts again. we think it was waiting. there are now two orcas and they push the rudder to the portside mainly. Also we feel at least 2 hard pushes on the keel. we decide to disconnect everything connected to the rudder so it can swing freely from side to side. After about 1 hour we can see they slowly move away and we wait for 30 minutes to be sure they are gone. we can feel we may have some rudder left and we decide to put the spare rudder-arm on, and set a small sail to control the boat to nearby harbour. as we reach 1.5 knots of speed, we are attacked again. at this point we call the coastguard. the orcas was still around us pushing the rudder as the coastguard arrive 40 minutes later. at this point we notice the depth sounder was still active and we turn it off. the Spanish coastguard towed us away and the orcas did not follow us.
they did not manage to do damage to our rudder because it could swing freely out to the side of the boat and we are unsure if it was the coastguard ship or shutting off the depth sounder that made them leave. looking back we should have been more patient with moving.
we still need to have the boat up on land to inspect the damage more clearly as there might be cracks in the fiberglass or hinges.
also i don’t know if it has been reported, but a french sailing vessel was towed in 2 hours after us and they was being chased all the way in.
Orca behaviour:
the orcas were spending a lot of time observing the rudder and they waited a long time to see if anything moved. it seemed like movement and sound triggered the attacks.
they would push it slowly and with force, but with no success. then maybe the frustration made them push the boat.
Also we think it was playing type of behaviour, since they was first hiding under water with no bubbles or movement under the boat. and second time they let us see them swim far away, only to circle back under water and wait again, ready to attack. it seemed like they wanted us to move the rudder or boat so they could keep playing.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
This information is from a report obtained by GTOA
We were going from La Coruña to Vigo and after 9 hours sailing the wind dropped nearly to zero after passing Cabo de la Nave. We put on the engine, kept the mainsail hoisted and activated the autopilot. Motoring at 6 knots direction South. After approx. 15min motoring we felt the first hit. We could not see them approaching. Just after the first hit, we put the autopilot in stand-by, switched off the engine and also all electronic devices including GPS, unless the VHF. The main remained hoisted but since there was nearly no wind, it had no impact in our speed. Our remaining speed was result of the inertia and of the orcas hits.
Orca behaviour:
They were two orcas. The orcas seemed not to pay much attention on us and were focused on the rudder. However during the attack one remained in stand-by and the other hit the rudder. We can not say if they switched the roles in between. After each hit some seconds passed by, as if they were analysing how to continue and then attacked again. Once the rudder was destroyed - only the rudder stock was left- they disappeared. 2min video available.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
The first thing we noticed was the rudder being manipulated very forcefully back and forth, the stand for our steering wheel shaking. After ca 3 turns we realized it must be an orca encounter, so we turned off the autopilot and tried to lock the rudder. They were stronger than the rudder resistance, so we don't know if it made any difference. They kept on ramming but mostly to one side after that, pushing the rudder on its maximum angle. At one point they also turned the boat 180 degrees against the wind, in what felt like one stable, strong movement.
We could see orcas on all sides of the boat, but decided to stay inside the cockpit cover to keep a low profile. We saw at least a mother and a small child and 3 similar looking orcas.
We also rolled in the genoa and kept a reefed mainsail for stability, with almost no speed in the boat. Turned off the sonar after 5 minutes (as soon as we could think of it).
The frequency and intensity of the rammings declined gradually towards the end of the encounter, which lasted around 15 minutes.
We called UK coast guard to inform about the encounter. After checking the rudder with a GoPro we contacted them again to ask for towing to land. There was very little left of our rudder. They suggested to try to manouvre with engine and the little piece of rudder, and it worked! Slowly and wobbly we managed to get to Brest without assistance.
Orca behaviour:
They made no sound before they started ramming, so it came as a complete surprise. In the start they focused on ramming the rudder back and forth to the extremes.
Sometimes they would swim off, maybe 10-30 meters from the boat, and then come back again for more ramming. There was a mother and child who swam in tandem - we did not see them approach the hull/rudder directly, but it was hard to get a good overview sitting inside the cockpit, so we cannot exclude the possibility.
The orcas blew some air out from time to time after the encounter had started.
It seemed like the 3 others went one at a time, but in the beginning we were hit very frequently, so they might've gone together aswell.
Towards the end there were some breaks of maybe 30-60s between rammings.
We saw at least 5 orcas, but cannot exclude the possibility of there being more.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
At 12.00 we were attacked by a single young Orca (around 4m). We switched off every electronic device. The rudder did not respond anymore and. we called for help via VHF.
This attack lasted 20 minutes.
Around 1 hour later - we were towed to a rescue boat - the attack started again. This time it was 6 animals and the attack lasted for 20 minutes again.
Orca behaviour:
The first attack was like playing of a single animal.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
Then the other boat called us again via VHF: "I can see them coming towards you". Only then we realized, that this might be an Orca attack. Just some moments later, one Orca swam towards us. We were warned by skipper of the other boat about the approach, so we stopped the motor and stayed quiet and out of sight before the Orca reached us, but we kept the instruments on, due to the close rocks. The Orca bumped into our boat from below, a few times, just for two minutes, then it lost interest and swam back to the other boat.
Orca behaviour:
The Orca (just one) swam to our boat from the side. Under the boat it yanked our rudder, then bumped into us from below. It came up to breath right next to our boat, and bumped into our hull or keel again a few times, before losing interest and leaving.
We started the motor and checked our rudder as soon as help for the other boat arived. We were fine, so we carried on carefully watching.
About 20 minutes later we saw the Orca again, in about 1 mile distance. So we stopped the motor, stayed quiet, and it passed us without bothering us. In further distance, we could see 2 other Orcas passing.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Heard a mayday reference Orca attack around 0939 -0950 in area outside Muxia . As we were heading south towards that area we kept a lookout.
At 10.40 we spotted three Orca two approx 7m in length and a smaller Orca around 5m in length approaching closely to our stern and interacting with the rudder we were sailing around 7-9 knots we dropped sail and the Orca then continued interacting with the rudder for 30/40 minutes pieces of the rudder were broken free and the engines were switched on one in forward the other in reverse and then alternated to try to deter them attacking saildrives Once engines were started the Orcas stood off some 20 m from the boat as if they were waiting for the engines to stop. After 15 minutes they then disappeared . On inspection one rudder was destroyed completely the other showed deep scratches but remained mainly intact .we then made our way to Muxia for repairs we heard that the Dutch sailboat which raised the initial mayday was towed into Camarinas for Repairs.
Orca behaviour:
Constantly grabbing and moving rudders then swim off slightly allowing other Orca in. No ramming of hull
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
No
Comments:
We were at the helm with autopilot on and the steering wheel was jolting and we knew we had Orcas.
The helm and boat were knocked quite aggressively however when we turned off they became less interested.
Orca behaviour:
Playful
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, minor - will wait until the end of the season
Comments:
This report was obtained by GTOA.
I stopped the boat immediately because I had read in a news article about similar incidents that that was the right thing to do. I also turned off the autopilot right away so that the orca wouldn't damage the drive. Then I shut down the engine completely because I thought the noise might bother the orca.
I was able to keep navigating, although the steering quadrant seems to have a lot of play now. I think I might have to replace the upper rudder bushing, but I won't be able to tell for sure until I haul the boat out of the water in September. The rudder is quite a long lever, and it's hard to believe that the force of an animal that big on a lever that long would leave no damage whatsoever. But I sailed on for six more days to Corsica with no problems.
Orca behaviour:
It was only one orca that I was aware of. I saw him about 100m away shortly before he first struck.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
We were sailing with a 12 meter catamaran off Peniche when we saw two killer whales. They immediately hit the rudder. I immediately stopped the autopilot, lowered the sails and left the boat drift. They hit the rudder and turned the boat around for about ten minutes and then left. I turned on the engines again and started to drive away but they came back immediately, I turned everything off again and they stayed this time for half an hour longer.
Orca behaviour:
Relatively calm, going under the boat, hitting the rudder blade, blowing bubbles under the surface.
No vocalization heard, they rubbed their snouts on the edges of the hull.
Below are extracts from interaction reports where the skipper reported using other measures.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
The encounter took place 1 hour after sunset……… Whilst there was a remaining bit of twilight, we did not see any Orcas before we felt the wheel being knocked. After that we saw them quite clearly. I took over hand steering after the first hit and felt the occasional knock. For 5 minutes the Orcas swam alongside the boat, sometimes diving back down under. After 5 mins we had some violent hits on the rudder. Then a few more minutes of swimming alongside. The stayed very much towards the aft end of the boat. After around 10 minutes the Orcas left. After another 5 minutes I went below to fix and to prepare a radio report. Whilst getting my information together the Orcas returned and we took some big hits to our rudder area. We were on autohelm for the first hit and then I was hand steering. The second interaction only lasted a few minutes but was more violent.
During the first encounter we tried pumping out the black water tank that had been prefilled with a bleach solution. This was not effective and if anything provoked some of the hits. During all of the encounters we continued to motor sail and did try to close land. The engine was running and engaged the whole time and we had just the mainsail up.
Orca behaviour:
Whilst the interaction was unwelcome and at times worrying, the overall impression I got was one of playfulness/inquisitiveness.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
The yacht sank.
Comments:
This yacht reported that it was towing a dinghy or other inflatable and that the orcas played with that before moving to the yacht.
We saw three Orcas. One older/bigger and two younger/smaller Orcas. It seemed, that the older one taught the two younger ones how to attack. It started with bumps against the hull. And continued with attacks against rudder. In the beginning the bumps weren't as heavy as in the end, when we thought, that our boat would turn over the top, if the orcas managed to brake the keel. At the end the attacks almost only focused on the rudder, till it broke including the rudder box, so that water got into the hull and bottom of the motor. The bumps against the hull must also have led to brakes of it partly, but we didn't manage to find the crack. Because the main water intake came through the bilge, we assumed, that a small crack at the connection between hull and keel should have been the problem. In the end we had to be rescued and the Boat sank.
At the moment the orcas had broken the rudder, they disappeared. In total the attack lasted about 90 minutes with 3 short interruptions of a few minutes.
Orca behaviour:
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
………..The orcas struck without warning.. No circling, blow hole noise, plumes. They came from below and struck port side rudder - instigated by a single "dirty" looking one (the white part was actually greenish- brown). Two other orcas swam 10-15 meters below the thug. The thug immediately came around and hit the same port rudder a second time - about 30 seconds after the initial attack. We were just understanding what had happened from the first hit when the second hit occurred. We immediately initiated an Orca protocol we had rehearsed: Crew 1 - Disengage autopilot - go grab 3x4 foot piece of white fibre board, with 30 foot line attached, to drag behind boat (This never got deployed). Crew 2 - Stop engine. Pour four 1.5 litter bottles of urine over transom. (Urine had ZERO effect). Place boathook in water, bang on it with metal bilge pump handle (ZERO effect - except I was able to "poke" the thug with the boat hook. This did nothing, the thug merely pushed it away). Crew 3. Open holding tanks - about 15 gallons on starboard and 3 gallons on port. (ZERO effect, the thug swam right through it, undeterred). …... Crew 4. Lower sails (already down) spot for orcas, prepare radio call (no need) . The damaged rudder caused the boat to move in a circle. At this time, a second pod of three appeared about 100M away, swimming in a circle around us. After a few minutes, the thug came back for another go at our starboard rudder. I vigorously moved boat hook around the good rudder, banging on it with the handle, to make a metallic sound. I also thrust the pole at the thug as he swam around the good rudder. I did not make any physical contact this time, but did make eye contact. The other two swam below the thug again. After a few minutes of not being able to get to the good rudder, the thug and his gang left.After a few minutes both pods of 3 swam in circles around the boat, about 100M away. Again, I vigorously banged on the boat hook. After a few minutes, they left for good.
Orca behaviour:
One thug, having dirty skin, causing all damage. The others just swam around.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, extensive - major works required
Comments:
……Around 1pm I noticed the orca breathing about 1000 meters from my boat. there were three orcas on the water surface. after that it was quiet. ……...After two jolts, the engine was started and reverse gear engaged, the sails turned to the wind, slow walking speed backwards. There was no more vibration for about 10 minutes. There were no orcas on the boat. The engine was turned off. 10 minutes later a single large orca under the boat touched the rudder and bent the detent and bit off the rudder. Now the urine tank was opened. There were no more attacks. The boat was no longer steerable. ………
Orca behaviour:
Only one orca was active, the others just watched. the adult large animals are the ones that attack. if the rudder is defective, all the animals have disappeared.
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
Sailing using sails, 3-4 knots 3-5 m/s wind. ….. 2 - 3 orca were turning the boat around, and pushing and biting the rudder. They were not attacking the rudder on my windpilot ( windrudder), so i raised it above the water. I try to keep the rudder in the middle, without force, so it won’t bang onto full rudder.
Try to put chlorine in the toilet, but they were pushing the boat backward, so i try to drop by drop chlorine in the water behind the boat.
Next i start the engine and try to go backwards, and after 1-2 minutes they stopped and disappear. It took 15 minutes at all.
Orca behaviour:
Orcas were swimming around the boat and they attacked the rudder mostly from directly behind, but also from the sides, but most they came from behind. They were breathing heavily ( i don’t know how they breathe normally, but i could hear it when i was down below ).
Was the boat damaged and in need of repair:
Yes, moderate - immediate repairs required
Comments:
This is from a report obtained by GTOA together with information found on social media including a video.
The orcas were not seen before the interaction commenced. The crew initially reversed but then turned off the engine.
The crew also poured petrol (or possibly diesel) over the stern but the video shows that this had no effect and the orcas are seen swimming in the area immediately as the fuel was poured.
In the first part of the attack approximately 30cm of the lower part of the rudder was removed. Eventually a large Azimut motor yacht assisted by circling the yacht at high speed and this "distracted" the orcas (we assume this statement means that the interaction ended but cannot be certain)……..
Orca behaviour:
There were 6 or 7 orcas involved and the crew believed that all acted. The orcas appeared to have no sensitivity to the fuel that was poured overboard. [Note that the scientists at GTOA have advised that orcas do not detect fuel, and that is why Oikomi pipes have been used to keep orcas away from oil spills.]