Missing Yacht: Life Raft Discovered Unused

The life raft on the missing yacht Cheeki Rafiki has been found unused in its storage space, the US Coast Guard has said.

The search for the missing British sailors ended at 3am UK time after a search of the capsized boat found the only realistic means of survival had not been deployed.

An RAF Hercules plane has also stopped searching after the discovery, the Foreign Office said.

From left: Andrew Bridge, Steve Warren, James Male and Paul Goslin

US Navy divers found a completely flooded cabin with shattered windows, said the Coast Guard.

"A US Navy warship smallboat crew and surface swimmer captured underwater imagery clearly identifying the raft in its storage space [behind the wheel]. The image was shared with and acknowledged by the families," said a statement.

The raft was found stored in the aft of the boat Pic: US Coast Guard

"The crew and swimmer deployed to investigate the overturned boat after a helicopter crew located it 1,000 miles offshore Massachusetts and within the US Coast Guard's search area.

"The Navy surface swimmer determined the boat's cabin was flooded and windows were shattered, contributing to the complete flooding inside."

It had already been announced that the search would be called off in the early hours of Saturday if no signs of possible survival were discovered.

"None of the current developments" indicate the crew are still alive, said the US Coast Guard.

The search effort involved military aircraft and ships

A statement on behalf of Steve Warren's family said it was an "incredibly difficult" time and that the search effort had been "exceptional".

Rafiki after the sad news its hull has been found with the life-raft unused."

The upturned 40ft yacht had been found on Friday, with divers first knocking on the hull to check for signs of life.

The men's familes had campaigned for the search to go on

The families had said they were still hopeful their loved ones would be found despite the search being only hours from ending.

Relatives of Steve Warren, 52, Andrew Bridge, 22, James Male, 23, and Paul Goslin, 56, said they had been told "endless stories" of people surviving for months at sea.

The vessel ran into difficulties on May 15 and began taking on water while returning to the UK from a regatta in Antigua.

The Cheeki Rafiki had been at a regatta in Antigua

Yacht training and charter company Stormforce Coaching said it had been in contact with the skipper at the time, and that the crew were keeping the situation stable.

The original search was halted after 53 hours amid bad weather but resumed on Tuesday after a request from the UK government and a online petition which collected more than 200,000 names.

The hunt included commercial vessels as well as aircraft from the US Coast Guard, US Navy, US Air Force, the Canadian military and the RAF.

Rescuers scoured more than 21,000 square miles of ocean during their second search for the boat.

Experts had agreed it would be impossible for the crew to survive outside of the life raft in cold, rough seas.

Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted: "My thoughts are with the families of the crew of the Cheeky Rafiki after the sad news its hull has been found with the life-raft unused."

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