TECHNICAL PROBLEM IN LAS PALMAS, 27 OCT - 6 NOV

As mentioned we were struggling to get a berth in the Las Palmas marina when our propulsion system packed in. The system in question is called Dock and Go, which is designed by Beneteau and ZF and installed only on Beneteau yachts as an option. We had bought our yacht with the system installed which was unfortunate. It is quite useful while docking because it allows sideways movement in conjunction with the bow thruster, however it's very delicate and prone to expensive break-downs.

The headquarters of Beneteau reacted magnificently and dispatched an engineer from France with a replacement part.

The engineer arrived in Las Palmas on Monday the 2 Nov, and we met him on Tuesday 3 Nov. He worked on replacing the rotation motor and had it done in three hours. I had prepared the engine compartment and provided the tools, and of course assisted with the delicate operation, which I hope speeded up the process.

So with our problem solved we were free of worry and got on with some site seeing and shopping in Las Palmas.

This is the removed rotation motor. It weighed 28 kg.!