THE "DOTTEREL."

(1946) 80 Ll.L.Rep. 272

ADMIRALTY DIVISION.

Before Mr. Justice Pilcher, sitting with Captain W. R. Chaplin and Captain G. C. H. Noakes, Elder Brethren of Trinity House.

Collision - Look-out - Lights - Speed - Collision between steamships Alaska and Dotterel in English Channel - Vessels in area of intersecting lanes of traffic - Duty to pay special attention to look-out - Alaska, unlighted, on course of 170 deg.; Dotterel, with dimmed side lights, on course of 65 deg. - Red light of Dotterel sighted by Alaska about 200 yards away on starboard beam; loom of Alaska sighted by Dotterel about a quarter of a mile away on port bow - Helm of Alaska ported and then hard-a-starboarded in endeavour to throw her quarter clear - Hard-a-porting by Dotterel, followed by the switching on of her forward masthead light and full astern action - Impact between stem of Dotterel and starboard side aft of Alaska - Alaska sunk - Whether Dotterel should have gone astern sooner - Duty of vessel to show either no lights or her dimmed forward masthead light and side lights - No helm signal sounded by Dotterel - Navigation and Anchor Lights Order, 1939.