Catamaran returns home for inquiry

The shattered frame of the Team Philips catamaran was due back home in Devon this morning.

At first light yesterday, the skipper Pete Goss and his crew left the Scilly Isle of St Mary's on the slow journey home, towing the £4m carbon-fibre boat back to base. The state-of-the-art catamaran, designed to slice through the waves at 40 knots, was towed backwards at a rather slower six knots, with the piece of port bow that snapped off on Wednesday trailing behind it. The 25ft section broke off during the boat's first day of sea trials.

Mr Goss said the catamaran would be taken to Dartmouth, Devon, where it will be de-rigged over the next few days, before being taken back to Goss Challenges at Totnes. Designers and structural engineers will then try to establish why the boat, built to withstand the rigours of the Southern Ocean, failed in much calmer seas.