A loose grub screw on a sleeve was probably the cause of the rudder on the X 4.9 "Brainstorm" coming loose from the upper bearing. Following an inspection of the shipwrecked vessel on Gran Canaria, the shipyard X-Yachts in Denmark is now investigating possible causes for the devastating loss of the rudder. In particular, the experts on site have investigated how the screw connection could have come loose in the first place. X-Yachts' chief engineer Thomas Mielec says that it is still too early to draw any definitive conclusions about the cause of the damage. Nevertheless, Mielec names two possible scenarios from X-Yachts' point of view:
1) If it is found that there are no traces of locking paste on the screw connection, it is possible that the screw was never secured with Loctite by mistake when the rudder bearing was manufactured and has therefore been able to loosen unnoticed over a period of two years.
2) If analyses show that there are traces of Loctite on the screw connection, the cause could be that the screws were accidentally removed or loosened during service work. Such work was carried out by a service company in Spain in November.
According to a recently published press release from X-Yachts on the "Brainstorm" incident, Thomas Mielec, representing the shipyard, considers the second scenario to be the more likely. However, the damage investigation has not yet been fully completed. The following drawing illustrates the guidance of the rudder shaft in the upper bearing.
The four-man crew of the "Brainstorm" made the distress call on 18 January 2022, nine days after the start of the ARC January transatlantic regatta in Grand Canaria. The ship, a 14.50 metre X 4.9 yacht from the X-Yachts shipyard in Denmark, was found to have suddenly taken on water - after the rudder had apparently come loose from the upper bearing and the rudder shaft, which was no longer guided along its entire length, had smashed the GRP coker tube. Although the crew from Holland was initially able to control the water ingress, they were unable to reinsert the rudder into the upper guide.
The crew then decided to abandon the "Brainstorm" for fear of further damage to the hull. Two nearby yachts belonging to ARC participants took the four unharmed sailors from Holland on board. Two days later, the abandoned yacht was located by a salvage company and towed 1,400 nautical miles back to Gran Canaria. YACHT online has already reported on the dramatic events on the high seas.
