KEY POINTS:
The body found washed up on an island in Auckland's Waitemata Harbour yesterday has been confirmed as that of missing boatie, Mike Shaw.
Mr Shaw, 49, from Ramarama, south of Auckland, disappeared on Sunday when the five-metre runabout he and a friend were in sank near Browns Island.
Both men were wearing lifejackets and chatted to each other in the water for some time before they were separated and Mr Shaw drifted away.
The other man clambered ashore on Browns Island and was found the next morning when a search began.
Mr Shaw's body was found on Rakino Island, about 13km northeast of where the boat sank. The body, still wearing a lifejacket, was found by a member of the public about 10.30am yesterday.
The police launch Deodar III was expected to use new sonar technology today to search the harbour bottom for the sunken boat.
The wide angled multi-beam sonar system was developed by New Zealand company, Electronic Navigation Limited.
The system had attracted interest from overseas navies but had seldom been seen in New Zealand, said the company last November after the navy's last steam frigate Canterbury was sunk in the Bay of Islands as a dive attraction.
The system produced a clear underwater image of the sunken frigate sitting on the bottom of Deep Water Cove minutes after explosive charges had blown holes in the ship's hull and it sank on an even keel in 28 metres of water.
- NZPA
