A Danish court on Thursday sentenced a British sailor to 18 months in prison for his role in a fatal collision between his cargo ship and a Danish fishing vessel in the Baltic Sea.

"A 30-year-old British man, who was the officer in charge on the MV Scot Carrier, was today sentenced to one and a half years in prison by the Copenhagen district court for his role in a ship collision that claimed the lives of two Danish sailors," the prosecution said in a statement.

The man, who was found to have been drunk while keeping watch at the time of the incident and did not contest the charges, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, and was ordered deported from Denmark after serving his sentence.

He was also banned from sailing in Danish waters.

The accident occurred at night on December 13 in the Baltic Sea, between the port of Ystad in southern Sweden and the Danish island of Bornholm.

The Danish ship, Karin Hoj, was hit by the much larger British vessel and capsized, killing the two sailors on board.