Ferry captain `lost overboard'

A major air-sea search was under way last night for a P&O ferry captain believed to have gone overboard in the middle of a voyage.

The captain of the European Tideway, travelling to Felixstowe, Suffolk, from the Netherlands, was last seen at 4pm. Coastguards were called at 6.10pm.

A Sea King helicopter from Wattisham was scrambled, and three lifeboats from Aldeburgh, Harwich and Walton were sent to comb the North Sea. Police said last night they had launched a search of the ferry after it docked to see if the captain was still on board.