Fearing pirates, yachter decides to fly back home

Hufforde, who reached here in March last after setting out on an around the world voyage from California in 2002, said he took the decision to return to his country by air along with his Thai wife, heeding the advice of the US government not to travel by the yacht in view of the pirates problem in Somalia.

"The governments and Naval authorities are protecting only commercial vessels. The yachts travel too slow and become easy prey of the pirates," Hufforde told PTI here today.

His USD 120,000 yacht 'Pure Chance' was this morning loaded in a container with the help of a two cranes and then put on the vessel to be taken to Colombo from where it would be shipped to Georgia in US in a mother vessel.

Scott, who is passionate about yachting, commenced his journey in October 2002 from California and reached Kochi in March last year, covering South America, Far East, Japan, Hong Kong among other places.