Wether this was due to an increasing eastsetting current or shaftproblems could not be answered.

I now decided to launch a PAP-PAN message and since we had not activated our Iridium for a 4 day passage (obviously a mistake) and our SSB radio only had receivefunction up working (some malfunction in the antenna tuner) it had to be a PAN-PAN relay over VHF.

To our surprise no ship answered our PAN-PAN allthough repeatedly trying (probably since this function is overused and just means work and problems for all cargoships) but once within AIS range cargoship Mitsos answered and made a PAN-PAN relay to Malta MRCC.

They were made aware of the situation and wanted us to keep on relaying the situation as often as possible and also made it clear that their helicopter could evacuate crew within their 140Nm range but that the safety of the ship was the problem of it´s captain(towing from international waters to safe port could be a VERY expensive history and not clearly covered by all insurance companies).

Sailing Dora Mac could be one option but with current winds that would meen Libya which was not an attractive alternative.

We kept on with PAN-PAN relays while going down to 4,1kts of speed once coming up on the continental shelf of the Malta Plateau.

Our ETA was evening Friday Novemebr 10, 12hrs before bad weather coming.