LONDON, Oct 4, 2021 (BSS/AFP) - A coroner's inquest opens in London on

Monday into the mysterious sinking of a French fishing trawler 17 years ago,
which the victims' families blame on a submarine.

  French courts spent years investigating the sinking of the Bugaled Breizh
in international waters off Cornwall, southwest England, on January 15, 2004.

  But there has never been a full explanation about what happened.

  The ship's crew of five French nationals -- Yves Gloaguen, Pascal Le Floch,
Georges Lemetayer, Patrick Gloaguen, and Eric Guillamet -- all perished in
the sinking.

  Judge Nigel Lickley will hold inquests into the deaths of Yves Gloaguen and
Le Floch, whose bodies were found by UK search and rescue.

  Over three weeks, the judge will hear around 40 witness statements from
seamen, rescuers, maritime experts, submarine commanders and the victims'
families.

  Inquests are held in England and Wales in the event of a sudden or
unexplained death.

  The hearings establish the causes and circumstances on the balance of
probability. They do not determine criminal or civil liability, but set out
facts in the public interest.

  In particularly sensitive or important cases, a judge can be appointed to
oversee proceedings.

  - 'Great hope' -

  The victims' families have insisted from the start that either a British or
US submarine got caught in the boat's nets and dragged it down.

  British and NATO submarines were in the area for military exercises at the
time.

  Operating out of the Finistere region of northwest France, the Bugaled
Breizh -- "Children of Brittany" in the local Breton language -- sunk in less
than a minute.

  Weather was fairly good at the time.

  Patrick Gloaguen's body was discovered in the wreck during salvage
operations but those of Lemetayer and Guillamet have never been found.

  The men's families have long awaited the UK hearing, which they hope will
endorse their version of events, after lengthy proceedings in France were
inconclusive.

  Lawyer Dominique Tricaud, who represents the children of Lemetayer, told
AFP: "This gives us very great hope. The London court is dedicating three
weeks of hearings to this case.

  "It will get to the bottom of things and the families, who have never given
up, have never had such great hope.

  "The families think that the (British submarine) HMS Turbulent was
responsible for the sinking and are waiting for the trial to prove it.

  "They're not out for revenge but can't grieve on a state lie."

  - 'Full and fair' probe -

  The former commander of HMS Turbulent, Captain Andrew Coles, will give
evidence to the inquest on October 12 about the vessel's location on the day
the Bugaled Breizh went down.

  A senior officer from the Dutch navy's Dolfijn submarine, which is known to
have been in the area at the time as part of a NATO training exercise, will
also give evidence.

  Britain's Ministry of Defence and the Royal Navy have both denied claims
that one of its submarines was involved in the sinking.

  In 2006, the French Marine Accident Bureau concluded that the sinking was
an accident, most likely caused by one of the boat's trawler net cables
snagging on the seafloor.

  Other scenarios, such as a collision with a freighter, have been ruled out.

  The French probe ended after an appeal in June 2016, when it failed to
prove definitively whether the trawler sank in a sea accident or whether a
submarine hooked onto one of its cables.

  The inquest into Yves Gloaguen and Pascal Le Floch's deaths began in
Cornwall in 2020 but was adjourned due to Covid-19 restrictions and
transferred to London.

  At a March hearing, judge Lickley spoke to the fishermen's families via
video link, promising to "carry out a full, rigorous and fair investigation".

  Lickley also said the inquest had been informed by the Ministry of Defence
that "no non-allied submarines" were present at the time of the sinking.