RichardS
N/A
Why would it be a non-starter? I have a boat, almost identical in terms of style and size to the mobo in this incident and I have a transceiver. They are only a few hundred quid now, so not really out of the realms of someone owning a boat worth tens of thousands.
BTW I think the Ferry skip should take a larger portion of the blame, but I put it at about 70:30.
I only suggest that a transceiver is probably a non-starter in this particular case because of the likely attitude of the skipper. He has no VHF, therefore no DSC, therefore no MMSI, therefore no way of activating the transceiver unless he applies for an MMSI and he just doesn't seem like that kind of guy. However, an AIS receiver is cheap, easy to connect up, and needs no MMSI so there's perhaps more of a chance that he would take the plunge.
Richard