“So the killer whales attacked my boat.” The testimony of Alessandro Tosetti

Italian sailor Alessandro Tosetti was engaged in the “Global Solo Challenge” the solo round-the-world race, when in the waters of the Strait of Gibraltar his boat “Aspra Sail” was attacked by a pod of killer whales.

Once again the “killer whales”

It happened once again. A pod of killer whales attacked a sailboat that was sailing in the waters of the Strait of Gibraltar, and it almost nearly sank. The protagonist of the incident, with its now familiar pattern, was Italian sailor Alessandro Tosetti, who was completing the “Global Solo Challenge,” the famous solo round-the-world race devised by Marco Nannini.

Departing from Auckland, New Zealand, Alexander after a long 78-day sail, had recently scaped the Azores Islands and was about to cross the Strait of Gibraltar. It was in this area, however, that his race against time came to a halt.

• Read also: Killer whale attacks on boats. What to do, even in the Mediterranean

Suddenly “Aspra” was surrounded by cetaceans

As soon as he entered the Gulf of Cadiz, Tosetti planned to cross the strait in the evening and return to the Mediterranean after 30,000 miles of oceans behind him. He had also prepared his boat “Aspra Sail” to face a storm predicted over the next two days in the Alboran Sea. Instead, he was suddenly surrounded by a pod of killer whales that started violently bumping into the boat’s stern.

The navigator’s account is quite disturbing: “I had positioned myself in a corridor to the south with a few ships to rest for a while. Never would I have imagined that a group of killer whales would attack me in the Strait of Gibraltar. Large animals on 5 meters that for about half an hour battered ‘Aspra Sail’, especially its rudder – explains Tosetti – During the attack I performed the emergency procedure: I turned off the autopilot and the sonar, and closed the sails as well. But it was no use, after the first strokes the hydraulic part of the pilot in fact burst with all the oil in the bilge, the brakes twisted on the sector and I found myself adrift in the middle of the strait with the passing ships.”

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Severe damage to the rudder and the uncertainty of restarting

At that point, the Italian sailor was left with no choice but to alert rescue: “I requested rescue from the ‘Search & Rescue’ unit in Tarifa with the idea of getting towed. While waiting for them I managed to free the rudder, which seemed to be rotating again. On the fly I mounted the emergency tiller and to my surprise saw that I could steer. In this way by motor I sailed 12 miles to the port of Tarifa escorted by the tugboat that had joined me in the meantime. Too bad, however, that there I discovered that the rudder blade had been broken. Axle and bearings seem to be safe, I hope to be able to return home like this “.

Here are who are the killer whales involved in the attack

The group of mammals that attacked Alessandro Tosetti’s boat was recognized by the scientific association “GT Atlantic Orca,” which for years has been working for the conservation and management of the Spanish orca, which is present in about 50 specimens grouped into five families that are constantly monitored. They come from the Atlantic and come to the waters of the Strait of Gibraltar to hunt bluefin tuna throughout the winter until June. Among the protagonists of the attack on Tosetti’s boat, scientists also identified the specimen known as “Gladis Albarracín,” a female that has been present since June 2024 in this area and has never stopped interacting with boats until then.”

At the moment Alessandro Tosetti has moored “Aspra Sail” inside Tarifa harbor and is already working to repair the hydraulic part of the rudder and reconnect the autopilot. He hopes to depart as soon as possible and conclude his round-the-world sailing.