Coast Guard searching for Virginia couple missing after sailing trip to the Azores

Search teams with the U.S. Coast Guard are combing the waters for a Virginia couple who failed to return from a sailing trip to the Portuguese islands of Azores in the north Atlantic.

Yanni Nikopoulos and Dale Jones, both 65-year-olds from Virginia Beach, set sail from Hampton on June 8 — but just days later, they phoned home to report severe weather left their vessel damaged and that they would be turning around, according to the Coast Guard.

Dale Jones and Yanni Nikopoulos are missing.

The call, made about 460 miles east of their starting point, is the last anyone has heard from the couple. Since their disappearance, HC-130 Hercules crews have swept over the approximate area of the missing boaters, with the Coast Guard issuing an urgent marine information broadcast to alert boaters in the area. The agency added it is also coordinating its efforts with counterparts in Bermuda, as well as tracking cellphone and radio pings in a bid to locate the pair, Chief Brian Gainey, command duty officer, said in a statement.

“In situations like this, where there are so many unknowns, our coordination efforts need to cast a wide and intentional net,” Gainey said. “It’s a lot of detective work, but it’s all in service to finding these two individuals and bringing them home to their families.”

According to Jones’ Facebook page, the couple had been refreshing a wooden monohull sailboat at the Fort Monroe marina in Hampton before they set sail. Her daughter said the couple intended to set sail for Azores and then onto Greece.

While their exact return date was unclear, she said she expected them to return by Monday following their call earlier this month.

With News Wire Services