Yacht Tawk

I’m sure you’ve read or watched reports about the recent tragic sinking of the sailing superyacht Bayesian that resulted in multiple deaths. The somewhat unusual design of the yacht — its mast was taller (240’) than the boat was long (180’), and possibly still is; some reports say that the vessel is relatively intact, albeit resting more than a hundred feet below the surface of the waters off the coast of Sicily — may have contributed to its capsizing. This detail sent me down something of a yacht-related rabbit trail, one that reminds us that the uber-rich are not like us.

For example, Jeff Bezos — who is famous for wearing black t-shirts and launching rockets from the Chihuahuan desert in far west Texas, and maybe something else that I can’t quite call to mind — commissioned a sailing yacht called the Koru which is 417’ long and its masts are 278’ tall.

Unfortunately for the second- or third-richest man in the world (depending on the time of day), there’s a bigger sailing yacht in town: the oddly-named Sailing Yacht A. The A was built for a Russian oligarch who conveniently now claims to have nothing to do with it. It measures 465’ in length, three masts, each of which are 328’ tall. There perhaps should be an asterisk next to the “world’s longest sailing yacht” because, as this article points out, it’s actually a “sail-assisted motor yacht.”

The sails are technological marvels, comprised of carbon fiber and a material called Vectran, a manufactured fiber similar to Kevlar which is used in various applications ranging from the airbags on the Mars landers to badminton racket strings. Each sail could almost cover a football field.

Now, back to Bezos’s Koru. One would think that a $500 million yacht would be designed in such a way as to be totally self-sufficient, a veritable metropolis on water. One would be wrong.

According to the Wikipedia article linked above, the Koru is shadowed by the 246’ long motor yacht Abeona as a yacht support vessel. This tiny (relatively speaking; it’s among the 250 largest yachts in the world) yacht serves as crew housing, supply storage, and has a helipad along with an enclosed helicopter garage.

Of course, sailing yachts and even sailing-assisted motor yachts are dwarfed by the largest motor yachts. The Azzam tops the list at 590′ in length and there are six additional yachts in excess of 500′.

The Azzam can float in water as shallow as 14′ and according to this article, it can accommodate up to 36 guests and 80 crew members (heaven forbid we should make do with only one crew member per guest).

However…the world of superyachts doesn’t stand still for long, and the Azzam has yielded its “world’s longest” title to the Rev Ocean. It measures a tad more than 639 feet, or more than two football fields in length. It’s interesting, however, that this is not a mere exercise in egotism. The Norse billionaire owner, Kjell Inge Røkke, describes the Rev Ocean as a research expedition vessel, fitted with “advanced oceanography equipment”; a submarine hangar; not one but two helipads; a hydrophone installation for eavesdropping on whales, dolphins, and scuba divers undergoing shark attacks; and a 3D printing facility for fabricating parts and equipment. It will be available for charter, so start saving your spare change; you can book your vacation online here.

The engineering and technological aspects of these big boats is pretty incredible. In closing, I’ll point you to the account of the superyacht Galactica, constructed by the Dutch shipbuilder Heeson. The Galactica is the largest ship ever built by the company at 262′ in length and 39′ feet wide. The yacht is billed as the fastest all-aluminum superyacht on the planet, capable of speeds up to 30 knots (34.5 miles per hour). That’s impressive, but not as impressive as the journey from the shipyard to the sea. The boat had to travel miles down a series of canals and lock gates, and under multiple bridges. this huge vessel cleared one gate with a mere 3″ clearance on either side, and went under a bridge with the same 3″ clearance. I hope the pilot earned a bonus for that exercise.

I’ve never aspired to own a superyacht. I’ve never even aspired to own a bass boat. But we do have a tandem inflatable kayak and I’ve been inspired by this investigation to consider whether it would be advisable for us to acquire a support vessel along the lines of what the Koru has. After extensive research, I believe I’ve found the perfect vessel to support our kayak excursions. What do you think…am I right or am I right?