A man at the helm of a powerboat which crashed killing hi brother has been told he will not face prosecution.

Ian Langan, 45, died after the boat his younger brother Cliff, 44, was driving speared into the side of his craft off Brighton Marina last August.

Sussex Police presented evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service which has decided on no further action.

The family has welcomed the news.

The Langan's brother Martin, 48, said: "This was a tragic accident and no good would have come from a trial.

"This will help us move on, although Cliff is still finding it hard to come to terms with what happened. I don't think he will ever completely get over it."

Cliff Langan was arrest-ed along with the skipper of the vessel. Both were freed on bail and have now been informed neither will be charged or prosecuted.

Mr Langan said at the time he felt a deep sense of guilt but insisted the collision was an accident.

He said if it had to happen he was glad he was at the helm: "If it had been anyone else I would be asking could he have done this or that to avoid the collision."

Mr Langan, who is self- employed, said there was nothing he could have done to avoid the crash and his quick reactions saved other lives.

"If I had not spun away at the last moment, then all those on the other boat would have perished."

The two brothers, close friends all their lives, had been out at sea enjoying themselves with five friends for only eight minutes before the crash.

Mr Langan, who lives at the marina, was steering a friend's 26ft powerboat Blue Sunset towards the Palace Pier.

He said: "I made a 180 degree turn and was doing about ten knots. The bow was up and I could not see immediately in front. I increased speed slightly to about 15 knots to bring the bow down and the other boat was there, directly in my path."

Mr Langan said he veered off to starboard in a fraction of a second but could not avoid riding up the stern of the other vessel, the 25ft jet-powerboat Jade Princess.

Mr Langan's brother, a chef at Brighton Marina Yacht Club who lived in Springfield Road, Brighton, died instantly and a friend Mike Tierney, in his early 50s, suffered a broken leg and internal injuries.

An inquest into Ian Langan's death is expected to be held in July.