Filo Jet Ferry Sinking: Police Tell Court VDR Has No Records
Police investigating the sinking of the high-speed passenger ferry Filo Jet have told a court in Kyrenia, on the north coast of Cyprus, that the ship’s voyage data recorder (VDR) holds no recordings from the day of the accident. Kyrenia faces the Turkish port of Taşucu across the north-eastern Mediterranean Sea.
The ferry, owned by Filo Denizcilik, sank on 30 August 2026 after leaving Kyrenia for Taşucu with 259 passengers and eight crew. It took on water through the bow and went down while trying to return to port. Twenty-seven bodies have been recovered, and the search for one missing person is still going on.
At the twelfth hearing, on 13 November, the Kyrenia District Court extended the detention of nine suspects by another seven days, despite objections from defence lawyers. Those held include a company director, the ship’s captain and deputy captain, two engineers and four other crew members. They are being investigated for causing death through negligence and carelessness.
From the CrewMirror Blog
Police said the VDR had also failed to record at other times. At an earlier hearing on 9 October, they had said it stopped recording on 28 August, two days before the sinking. Experts have finished decoding the unit and are preparing a report on 57 days of recordings.
The court also told police to obtain the ferry’s safety management system manual and muster list, to establish who held which duties and authority on board, including in an emergency. The case adds to a run of recent passenger ferry emergencies, such as the ro-pax ferry that listed off Real Port in the Philippines in October.
CrewMirror Takeaway
A VDR that is not recording leaves no record to explain what happened, and crew members may later face hard questions about it. Masters and officers are better protected when faults in the VDR and other safety equipment are reported to the company in writing, and when every crew member knows their muster list duties before sailing.
