Coast Guard: Cruise ship lacked proper pilot

The operator of a small cruise ship that ran aground this summer near Detroit has been fined for not having a properly certified pilot on board.

The U.S. Coast Guard says the mariner in charge of the 138-passenger Yorktown at the time of the incident was sailing with a license that was invalid for the waters where the grounding occurred.

The 257-foot-long vessel ran aground Aug. 25 while transiting the Detroit River during a Great Lakes cruise. No one was injured during the grounding, and the vessel was not damaged.

The Coast Guard says it has levied a $3,000 penalty on V Ships Leisure USA, the operator of the 120-passenger Yorktown, and is seeking to suspend the license of the vessel's pilot for what it is calling negligent operations.

The Coast Guard says its investigation into the grounding concluded that the pilot made serious errors in judgment due to his lack of familiarity and understanding of the waterway.