Mark Zuckerberg’s superyacht: Alaska cruise ship makes rescue nearby

According to the U.S. Coast Guard, Wilderness Legacy went to help a stranded skiff near Farragut Bay on August 3, towing the 21-foot boat nine miles to sheltered water and giving it fuel after it ran out about 85 miles from Juneau.

The skiff had two women, a child, and a dog aboard. The Coast Guard sent out a marine assistance request at 9:56 p.m., but officials said the people on board were not considered to be in distress.

If you saw the online backlash, it picked up after passenger Michael Love said the captain of Wilderness Legacy told guests that Launchpad, Mark Zuckerberg’s 387-foot superyacht, hadn’t responded, even though tracking data reportedly showed Launchpad was closer and had slowed down before Wilderness Legacy stepped in.

A spokesperson for Mark Zuckerberg said neither Zuckerberg nor Priscilla Chan’s family was aboard Launchpad, and that the crew was on a different radio channel; since the Coast Guard had classified the incident as a non-distress call, SOLAS-style obligations were less clearly defined.

UnCruise owner Dan Blanchard said this kind of assist is common in remote Alaska, and that this was reportedly the second case involving a small cruise ship in two weeks; you can keep up with updates from UnCruise and the Coast Guard.