THE BIGGEST AND UGLIEST SAILING BOAT IN THE WORLD

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It is owned by the Russian billionaire Igorevich Melnichenko and it is the biggest sailing boat in the world. 142 metres of length and 91 metres of height for a total price of 400,000 million Euros: these are the crazy numbers of Sailing Yacht A, called this way to be the first in the registers.

Designed by Philippe Starck and built in Germany, “A” is maybe one of the ugliest yachts never conceived, worthy heir of Motor Yacht A, another Melnichenko’s motoryacht launched in 2008. Like M/Y A, the lines designed by Starck are not elegant; masts are too big and disproportionate, and the mainmast is so large it can host a small room inside.

Materials are innovative: carbon fiber masts, aluminium hull with carbon fiber elements, teak decks and very strong bulletproof glasses. The keel has a window made up of one of the largest bent glass sheets never built, with a 18- square-metre surface: an excellent underwater observation point.

“A” has a swiveling propeller and two hybrid-diesel engines which allow a maximum speed of 21 knots. The captain can check the boat from the deck thanks to a dark touch-screen glass sheet, while a heliport is located on one of the eight teak decks of the boat. “A” can host 20 passengers and a crew of 54 members.

The first sea trial was made few days ago in Kiel (Northern Germany). Although the superyacht is ready to sail, interiors will be completed only in several months.

“A” is an extreme expression of the incredible technological development of recent years, maybe too much; with no doubt, enough to make the Melnichenko’s superyacht not only the biggest, but also the ugliest and the most ungraceful boat in the world.