The PILOT, a historic schooner that once served researcher Jacques Cousteau and more recently operated as a popular Brooklyn restaurant, sank overnight Wednesday in the Henry Street Basin near Red Hook. The 102-year-old vessel buckled beneath the waves, submerging bar stools, restaurant equipment, and other debris into the water.
![Showing on the left: the historic Ship "Pilot" sunk in the Henry Street Basin at Bay Street in Brooklyn, NY.]( "Showing on the left: the historic Ship "Pilot" sunk in the Henry Street Basin at Bay Street in Brooklyn, NY.")
Videos captured by kayakers show the schooner's masts emerging from the water, with wooden chairs floating nearby. Alex Pincus, CEO of Crew, the company that owned the PILOT, described the situation as a "nightmare" but confirmed that no one was aboard the vessel when it sank and no injuries were reported.
"Our immediate focus is on working with the appropriate professionals and authorities to understand what happened and determine the safest path to raise Pilot," Pincus stated. "We are devastated but remain hopeful that she can be salvaged."
The PILOT had been docked at the Henry Street Basin for repairs earlier this year. It previously served as a bar and oyster restaurant at Brooklyn Bridge Park's Pier 7 until last summer, when it was replaced by another floating establishment. Crew, which operates several waterfront dining venues, noted that the boat appeared to be in "rough shape" with deteriorated wood along the hull.
The sinking occurs just days before a large fleet of U.S. and international ships are scheduled to enter New York Harbor to commemorate the United States' 250th birthday, though the PILOT was not slated to participate. The vessel is also in the process of being designated a National Historic Landmark.
Built in 1924, the PILOT is one of two remaining racing schooners from the International Fisherman's Cup. Following its racing career, it served as a harbor pilot in Boston and was used by the Coast Guard during World War II to guide troop transport and supply ships. In the 1970s, it was purchased by individuals with ambitions for a global circumnavigation, but the voyage ended in Fiji. The schooner was then sold to researchers in the Galapagos, where Jacques Cousteau utilized the vessel. Pincus and his brother Miles acquired the PILOT in 2015, undertaking a full restoration to convert it into a restaurant.
