But "if the Coast Guard boarding officer were to conduct a vessel safety inspection under normal circumstances and see that many people on board a boat that size, they would definitely recommend that the operator probably return to port and offload some of them, " Mr. McKenzie said.

WSJ: 3 Children Die After Yacht Capsizes

"Provided the emergency generators worked and had enough power, they would have been able to return to port under their own power, but much slower, " said Andrew O.

NPR: No Central Agency Oversees, Inspects Cruise Ships

In return, Beijing is getting engineering contracts to build port and road infrastructure, winning business for Chinese state-owned enterprises, and showing off what China is good at: building major infrastructure projects in record time.

FORBES: China In The Driver's Seat

The Port of Jersey has agreed to return the pontoon in the spring and maintain the mooring chains for two years.

BBC: Pontoon may return to Jersey's Bouley Bay

Barger said he was aware of the skepticism about the LaGuardia return, but said the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey was making a determined effort to restore service.

FORBES: Hurricane Sandy Deals A Body Blow To Air Travel

Together the two men embark on a scheme that involves incapacitating the ship's skipper, changing the vessel's identity at sea, and sailing from San Francisco to Panama City to the west African coast in search of a port where, in return for cash, no questions are asked.

ECONOMIST: New fiction: Wanderings of a drugstore ship | The