An Alaska cruise ship, Wilderness Legacy, came to the aid of a small skiff near Farragut Bay earlier this week after the boat became stranded without fuel. However, vessel-tracking data reviewed by the Alaska Beacon and Halifax Shipping News indicates that the nearest boat at the time was not the cruise ship, but Launchpad, the superyacht owned by Mark Zuckerberg.
Michael Love, who was aboard the Wilderness Legacy, wrote on Bluesky that the ship’s captain told passengers Launchpad was closer to the stranded skiff but had “repeatedly refused to respond,” prompting boos from those on board. AIS tracking data appears to back up the claim that Launchpad was nearer to the boat in need of help, before stopping near the mouth of the bay. The Wilderness Legacy is then shown passing Launchpad, turning back, and towing the skiff to safety.
The U.S. Coast Guard and the Marine Exchange of Alaska did not immediately return requests for comment. Coast Guard Public Affairs Specialist Shannon Shepard told the Alaska Beacon, however, 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, a 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.”
