A search and rescue operation is under way for a man reported overboard from Ambassador Cruise Line’s Ambition during the ship’s return passage from Lerwick to Dundee.
Police Scotland said it received a report at approximately 8.55am on Friday, 21 August 2026, that a man had gone overboard from a cruise ship in the North Sea, around 40 nautical miles from Anstruther in Fife.
The force said HM Coastguard was carrying out a search and rescue operation, but the man remained missing at the time of its statement. His next of kin has been informed and police enquiries are continuing.
Coastguard coordinates North Sea response
HM Coastguard said it was coordinating the response following a report received at about 8.35am. Its statement placed the reported man-overboard position approximately 36 nautical miles east of Arbroath.
The different distances given by the two authorities use separate locations on Scotland’s east coast as their reference points. Both statements relate to the same continuing incident involving Ambition.
The cruise ship subsequently berthed at Dundee, where police and Coastguard personnel attended.
Passengers temporarily kept aboard
Ambassador Cruise Line said the alarm was raised while Ambition was sailing from Lerwick to Dundee after it was discovered that a guest was not where they were expected to be.
Passengers were initially asked to remain aboard after the vessel arrived in Dundee while the crew completed a thorough ship-wide search. They were kept informed by the captain and have since been cleared to disembark.
Early reports described more than 1,000 passengers and crew as being “trapped” aboard. However, the restriction was a temporary safety and investigative measure while the search was conducted, and disembarkation has now taken place.
Ambassador said it was following established search and rescue protocols and continuing to work with the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre, Maritime and Coastguard Agency, HM Coastguard and Police Scotland.
Dundee turnaround slightly delayed
The incident caused a slight delay to Friday’s turnaround operation at Dundee. The cruise line said guests booked to join Ambition should continue to travel to the port according to their scheduled embarkation time.
Ambassador said it could not provide further details while the matter remained subject to an active police investigation.
Ambition was returning from eclipse voyage
Ambition was completing a 13-night solar-eclipse cruise that departed Dundee on 8 August. The published itinerary included calls at Runavík in the Faroe Islands, Reykjavík, Grundarfjörður and Seyðisfjörður in Iceland, followed by Lerwick in Shetland on 19 August.
The voyage was scheduled to return to Dundee on 21 August. Ambassador promoted the sailing as an opportunity to view the 2026 solar eclipse while visiting Scotland, the Faroe Islands and Iceland.
The ship can accommodate up to 1,200 guests in 680 cabins. The cruise line has not published a confirmed total for the number of passengers and crew aboard this particular voyage.
This is a developing incident. Deck7 will update this report if Police Scotland, HM Coastguard or Ambassador Cruise Line releases further confirmed information.