| Nobiskrug | 142.1M | S/Y "A" | 2015/17 |

Seems to be that in the overall design, neither one thing or another, to me, an insult to aesthetics.
My 2c

The main problem was, the design came first, function had to be squeezed in later. The article states it very clear. With a true 3 mast Dynarig, loads on the sails and mast bearings would have been much easier to handle and much cheaper to build also. Plus all aspect sailing performance would have been much better, also the underwater body of this hull is not optimized for sailing. And honestly, could have a Dynarig make this "Thing" looking worse .

But the design was set and Magna Structure and Doyle Sailmakers did a great job with building this giant free standing rig and this very large sails. They designed the rig to the edge of todays possibilities as far carbon fiber technology and laminated sails are concerned. There was no prototyping, only CAD/CAM and CFD and proper calcualtions via Reynolds-averagred Navier-Stokes equations. The first sail produced, is what you have seen on her mast. That is true rocket science, gentlemen. I had to study that stuff at university during our lectures about aerodynamics and airfoil design. But we did not have modern computers and CFD at that time.

But as enviromental conditions and this giant ship could have asked for more (higher loads and stress on the materials), they had to implement very strict operational limits. Means, any decent wind force, which could push this big boat adequately, is already beyond the the sails and rig reefing point.

The sliders had to be intergrated into the sail battens, otherwise furling this giant peace of laminated fabric would not be possible. The main sail for example has 1520 square meter of sail area and has a weight of 2,27 metric tons. So, reefing (which means furling) has to be done with no side forces applied. Reefing under wind force would rip the sail apart. Which means in pratice, they will have to furl early, very early and always turn the ship directly into the wind, doing this. Not very practicable.

But we will see her driving around with her sails up. Pictures and videos will tell, how much this rig will contribute to her pace.

As I said before, a sail assisted motor yacht not even a motor sailer.

Clearly, the propulsion the sails provide will be something far less than optimal. But, they'll provide something, particularly on long crossings. The company that built the kite rigs for large cargo ships claims that the kites can reduce fuel burn by 25% and even 30% depending on conditions. My question would is: Using the fuel savings, how long will it take for SY A's owner to recoup the capital costs of the unique sail configuration ? Is there a reasonable return on investment window in that regard, or will the savings be negligible in relation to the cost of those monstrous sails?

Using the fuel savings, how long will it take for SY A's owner to recoup the capital costs of the unique sail configuration ?

NEVER...

Doyle released a short video showing the sail construction:

Very nice videos! Both of them. They should some cool angles!

We usually, for obvious reasons, think of this yacht from the outside in when on closer inspection she seems the product of a highly experienced owner taking the latest trends in yacht design to their inevitable extreme. The incredibly private main pool area being one example and the extremely high aft main deck with the fold down stern balcony on the deck below being another. The notable takeaway from the above videos (thanks for posting!) is that she seems very light inside, much like MY/A.

The most significant bit we haven't seen to date is what I assume to be a beach club on the lower deck aft based on the two aft-most side hatches near the waterline and the stern hatch below the fold-down balcony.

First time with all 3 sails up, is it me or does it look like she is listing a bit like a regular sailing yacht.

From that camera angle, it definitely looks like she's heeled over at least a few degrees.

Sorry gentlemen for my contradiction. That is exactly what is ment by motorsailing or sail assisted motoring. The difference between the two terms is only the amount of contribution of her sails to the yachts pace.

The little video shows her clearly sailing with full sails in light wind (look at her flag) with her props turning and delivering thrust. The vortex behind her stern is the typical picture of two counterotating CCP Props at low RPM. Remember, the propeller hubs are 25 ft below surface.

Also one can tell, that her crew is still in the learning phase (by looking at her sails) as far as sailing is concerned, this is exactly what this boat with this kind of rig and sails has been built built for. Downwind sailing or sailing in favorite wind in light to very moderate conditions with engine assistance.

The combination of its forward vector with only very little drift shows, that there is additional propulsion from props. The heel itself is no evidence of solely wind propulsion. A sail boat with all sails up will even heel moored in harbour. It is just a matter of lever arm and sail area.

But I must say, she looks good under sail and nobody said she would be racing under sail. Her German Captain will open for sure a new book about sailing a giant with with the newest technology available.

And the guys from Nobiskrug are most likely jolly glad, that rig and sails are not under their warranty.

"Real blue water sailors only sail downwind"

Very interesting to see it underway with her sails up. I think this yacht is really especially moving with the sails up.

AND plenty of diesel on board.....

On Instagram there is a picture from on board SYA of her pool... Looks really good actually.