Zuckerberg’s yacht was closer, but someone else saved a stranded boat

Earlier this week, the Alaskan cruise ship Wilderness Legacy rescued a small skiff stranded near Farragut Bay after running out of fuel. But, according to tracking data reviewed by the Alaska Beacon and Halifax Shipping News, the closest vessel was actually Mark Zuckerberg’s super yacht, Launchpad.

Michael Love, a passenger on the Wilderness Legacy, posted on Bluesky that the captain announced the Launchpad was closer, but “repeatedly refused to respond,” which was met with booing from the passengers. The AIS tracking (embedded below) seems to support that the Launchpad was closer to the vessel in trouble, but then stopped near the entrance of the bay. The Wilderness Legacy can be seen passing Launchpad, then turning around and towing the stranded boat back to safety.

The US Coast Guard and the Marine Exchange of Alaska did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But Coast Guard Public Affairs Specialist Shannon Shepard told the Alaska Beacon that “at approximately 9:56 p.m., the Coast Guard determined they were not in distress and issued a marine assistance request broadcast on their behalf.”

Brian Baker, spokesperson for Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan, told The Verge that “Mark and his family were not on board at the time of the incident. As the Coast Guard noted, the boat was not in distress, and by the time the crew reviewed the Coast Guard contact on a different radio channel from the one they were operating on, the assist was already underway. We’re grateful all parties are safe.”