The MY5, the first flybridge catamaran in the Fountaine Pajot powercat line and previously known as the MY40, pushes the boundaries of powercat cruising in speed, safety and style. 

Thanks to its dual-hull cat design with suspended central platform, the MY5 offers increased interior volume, long range and stability, at rest and underway. Powercats are also highly efficient, requiring less propulsion to achieve similar speeds and ranges as conventional monohull vessels.

The flybridge deck is a standout feature, offering virtually unobstructed 360-degree ocean views and an elevated beach club vibe. Aft of the off-center starboard helm is a spacious area perfect for entertaining, complete with a wet bar, refrigeration center, and seating. It’s the most popular space aboard, according to the builder. If the weather turns, a second helm station in the salon allows the skipper to pilot the MY5 in climate-controlled comfort.

On the main deck, architect Daniel Andrieu and the Andreani Design team created a modern yet timeless look, maximizing the use of space offered by the vessel’s nearly 20-foot beam. The galley, located on the starboard side, connects both interior and exterior spaces while the foredeck offers a sunbather’s paradise with dual lounges and abundant seating.

At the stern, an optional hydraulic swim platform lowers for launching a PWC or small tender. A swim ladder provides easy access from the water. The teak cockpit has an L-shaped settee and easy access to the engines via deck hatches. Crew safety is a priority, with secure grab rails along the spiral staircase leading to the flybridge and tall railings along the walkaround alleys fore and aft.

Belowdecks, the Maestro layout includes an owner’s suite with a private companionway for added privacy. The stateroom, equipped with a transverse queen berth, gets natural light via hullside windows. The VIP stateroom has a similar-sized berth, while the forward guest stateroom offers twin bunks. Two heads and enough stowage space for extended cruising complete the accommodations.

The Fountaine Pajot MY5 is standard with twin 300 hp diesels and Volvo Penta IPS drives and has a 1,000-nautical-mile range at an economical 18 knots. With optional 440 hp engines, the MY5 has a top hop of 22 knots, and with a draft of just 3 feet, 6 inches, shallow-water anchorages are easily accessible.

Quick Specifications

• Overall Length: 42’4”
• Maximum Beam: 19’9”
• Fuel Capacity: 372 Gal.
• Freshwater Capacity: 112 Gal.
• Draft: 3’6”
• Displacement: 46,000 lb.

The post Fountaine Pajot MY5 Reviewed appeared first on Yachting.

Silent-Yachts and VisionF Yachts have collaborated to create the former’s first hybrid-powered boat: the Silent VisionF 82. It’s an aluminum catamaran with three driving modes: electric, hybrid and power. A fully electric model is also available; there are 34 solar panels atop the 82. Top speed is reportedly 13 knots.

In terms of size, the 82 is most comparable to the Silent 80: The 82 is 6 inches longer than the 80 while surrendering about 3.5 feet in beam. According to the builder, on the 82, more space is allocated to the foredeck and its “sunken lounge area” with a table, an L-shaped settee for four to port and an overhead shade from the extended flybridge deck. There’s also space for four personal watercraft or a variety of modular-furniture arrangements.

Moving inside, there’s a 581-square-foot salon, which is nicely connected to the aft deck and its alfresco dining around a table for eight. The 82 has several layout options: two galley-up versions and a galley-down option. In the galley-down option, there is one crew cabin with a V-berth forward in each of the hulls. The 94.7-square-foot galley is aft and belowdecks in the portside hull.

Alternatively, the galley-up options have the galley either in the starboard after corner of the salon or along the entirety of the starboard side. A crew cabin is where the galley is located in the galley-down option. Owners can choose two stowage spaces forward in each hull, or stowage in the portside hull and another crew cabin in the starboard hull.

Regardless of the layout, the 82 has four staterooms for the owners and guests. The 190-square-foot master stateroom is located in the starboard hull with eight hullside windows to illuminate the space. Its en suite head has his-and-her sinks and a 21-square-foot shower. Each of the forward guest staterooms is 91 square feet, and the portside, amidships guest stateroom is nearly 97 square feet. It can double as an office for boaters who need to get in a little work before snorkeling.

The 82’s flybridge has space for lounge furniture in various arrangements, or it can be utilized as an alfresco gym for fitness buffs. Regardless of the amenities here, the flybridge will always have 145 square feet of forward-facing sun pads, and there can also be four more aft-facing sun pads on the after part of the flybridge.  

Take the next step: silent-yachts.com

The post Meet the Silent VisionF 82 Hybrid Powercat appeared first on Yachting.

Between 50 and 70 feet length overall, everything changes. That’s especially true of multihull designs, where volume increases dramatically because of the vessel’s wider beam. Engines, onboard systems, space for the tender and more get upsized, creating a higher caliber of yacht.

The Aquila 70 is an example of this principle and shows how the builder transitioned from the production mindset to a semicustom mentality.

“The aesthetics and speed are what really drove the 70′s design,” says Lex Raas, president of Aquila product development. “The majority of powercats don’t perform; they have very wide beams, and with the wrong length-to-width ratio, you’re challenged on speed. We made our yacht perform.”

The 70′s design allows for a top-end speed north of 27 knots, also thanks to Aquila saving weight by using a higher ratio of carbon fiber on the 70′s construction than on its other boats. The builder worked on the running-surface design using computational fluid dynamics. “We did extensive CFD and tank-testing on the hull and running gear, even down to the rudder shape, to get those numbers,” Raas says. Stability was also a primary goal.

J&J Design, which has penned all of Aquila’s models, was tasked with creating a profile that didn’t look boxy. J&J used tinted glass, curves and a raked superstructure to achieve that goal. In profile, the yacht could pass as a 70-foot monohull.

The ride, as I discovered on a jaunt into the Gulf of Mexico from Clearwater, Florida, is pleasant but different than it would be aboard a similar-size monohull. There’s no rolling thanks to the twin-hull form; high up, it almost felt like the 70 was gliding over the water, rather than punching through it. The yacht reached a 27.3-knot top hop at 2,470 rpm, and the cruise speed at 2,000 rpm was 21.3 knots, with fuel consumption of 62 gallons per hour. The 1,000 hp Volvo Penta D13 diesels, paired with ZF 500-1 A gears, felt like the right power choice.

The forward section of the flybridge is enclosed, and the helm console is laid out well. There are three Stidd pilot seats, and there are lounges abaft for guests to enjoy the view underway. The open aft deck has a Kenyon grill, an Isotherm fridge and freezer, and a stainless-steel sink, making this place ideal for a barbecue on the hook.

The Portuguese bridge, which has joystick controls outboard to port and starboard, makes it easy to access the bow through centerline steps. There are also passageways along the side decks to move fore and aft on the main deck. Aft, stairs on both sides of the cockpit offer access to the water, while a custom tender is stowed in the transom, flush with the yacht.

Inside, Raas says, “the interior needed yachtlike DNA, so we incorporated the highest-end appliances, a proper dining table and Italian furniture.” Just forward of the cockpit is the 70′s main social area, measuring 300 square feet with 9-foot headroom, it has a galley with top-drawer appliances (see “Spacious Salon”) to starboard and a salon with a separate dining area to port. Fit-and-finish is excellent. Calming, light-colored Alpi wood covers the walls and ceiling, while details such as leather-wrapped, stainless-steel rails and a touchless faucet add a sense of subtle luxury.

The four-stateroom, five-head layout of Hull No. 1 (buyers can choose different layouts) includes a full-beam master stateroom, VIP staterooms aft that stretch along both sides, and a captain’s cabin that connects to the engine room. Thanks to windows everywhere, natural light permeates the spaces.

Looking at the yacht from the dock, the Aquila 70 is most certainly a catamaran. But step inside, and the yacht’s look and layout feel like a sizable monohull wrapped in luxury, speed and the comforts of home.

The King Treatment

The full-beam master stateroom forward has a table and lounge as well as a king-size berth occupying the central area, which is lit by windows along the sides. To starboard is an en suite with a private head, two sinks and a glass-enclosed shower. To port is stowage with pullout drawers, overhead cabinets, and a walk-in closet big enough for liveaboards.

Who Needs a Garage?

One of the highlights of the Aquila 70 is the custom-made Aquila tender, a 13-foot cat designed to be hoisted and secured between the yacht’s twin hulls. Designed by Morrelli & Melvin, the tender offers better stability than a similar-size monohull, with more carrying capacity. Aquila says the tender makes it easier to ferry people and gear to and from the dock, and that securing the tender flush against the deck is more efficient than hanging a tender off the stern. When the tender’s in the water, the platform can be used as a beach club.

Spacious Salon

The 300 sq. ft. salon/galley is populated with top brands for preparing meals (including a Gaggenau cooktop, oven, microwave, espresso machine and wine chiller) and for relaxing (the Natuzzi Italia decor includes a coffee table, bar chairs, a lounge and dining furniture). Other features such as electric blinds, Denon HEOS surround sound and controllable LED lighting deliver a high-end feel.

Take the next step: aquilaboats.com

The post Aquila 70 Reviewed appeared first on Yachting.

The evolution of the powercat has been steady during the past decade, thanks in part to Aquila Boats. The brand has been around for only nine years, but Aquila has sold more than 360 hulls in that time. I ran its most recent launch, the Aquila 54 Yacht Power Catamaran, in Clearwater, Florida—and learned firsthand why 27 hulls were sold before the boat even launched.

“We’re one of only three companies that design powercats this size,” says Lex Raas, head of Aquila’s product development. “The others come from sailing cats, so size and performance are different.”

Raas, who spent many years overseeing multihull design for France’s Leopard Catamarans, says the Aquila 54 came about because of demand for four- to five-stateroom multihulls that could be owner-operated. “You need that length to create these types of luxurious accommodations, not to mention a flybridge,” he says.

The 54′s interior has square footage that’s roughly the same amount of space as a 68- to 70-foot monohull. It’s also a smartly designed space: The cockpit has a table for alfresco dining, as well as three stools at a bar that connects to the galley inside via an opening window and door. Thanks to the boat’s 25-foot beam, the main deck effectively turns into one vast social area. Add the salon’s seating, 360-degree banks of windows and 6-foot-9-inch headroom, and the area feels more like a waterfront condo than a boat.

Aquila gave this first hull an ash-wood finish (the other choice is dark walnut) for a light, airy feel. The full-beam master stateroom has a queen island berth on centerline, with hullside windows and a few dressers. To starboard, the head (with two sinks, a toilet and a separate shower stall) is down a few steps. To port is enough cabinet stowage for long cruises.

The guest staterooms aft to port and starboard each have a dressing and seating area, as well as a head with an enclosed shower. The fourth stateroom, with twin berths and a separate entrance from the cockpit, can serve as crew quarters or a crash pad for two teenagers. This stateroom’s head also works as a day head.

My favorite part of the 54 was the optional sky lounge. The area can be sealed on rainy days or opened in sunny weather. Visibility from the twin helm seats is unobstructed, while the lounge area abaft those seats is its own ecosystem. Farther aft is a Kenyon grill.

The sky lounge also provides access to the foredeck via a Portuguese bridge and centerline stairs down to the bow. The setup not only makes moving between the bridge and foredeck simple, but it also provides a second route to get around the boat. Lounges on both sides of the stairs forward turn the bow into a private nook.

We left Clearwater for a short run along the Intracoastal Waterway and then out into the Gulf of Mexico. There was only a small chop, with 1- to 2-foot rollers, and the 54 felt like it was riding high off the water. One of a multihull’s advantages is minimal roll; pitch was also minimized by the foot-long underwater bulbs on the forward edges of the hulls. Those bulbs provide additional buoyancy and increase speed in displacement mode.

The hulls also plane, and with the upgraded 480 hp Volvo Penta D8 diesel inboards, this 54 reached a top-end speed of 22 knots; cruise speed was 15.5 knots. At 7.8 knots, its range is about 957 nautical miles. (Standard engines are twin 380 hp Volvo Penta D6s, and maximum power is twin 550 hp Cummins QSB6.7 diesels.)

Regarding style, J&J Design helped Aquila to give this power catamaran a yachtlike look, including keeping the profile sleeker than usual. Aquila also used well-known marine brands—many of them from US equipment-makers—throughout the yacht. Besides the Volvo Penta powerplants, the 54 has Kohler generators, Raymarine chart plotters and autopilot, SeaStar steering, a CZone system, Fireboy fire suppression, a Fusion stereo, and more. Raas says Aquila wanted owners to be assured they could service their boats in the United States.

Ironically, in that context, many of the 27 Aquila 54s that have been pre-sold are going to the Mediterranean, Asia and the Caribbean. “We hit all the right targets with this yacht,” Raas says, adding that pricing ranges from $1.5 million to $2.5 million.

What’s next for Aquila? According to Raas, potentially even bigger models. “We’re going to see the cat market explode,” he says. “Already, we’re seeing foils being adapted to catamarans, and other builders are coming up with innovative outboard versions.”

Take the next step: aquilaboats.com

The post Aquila 54 Power Catamaran Review appeared first on Yachting.

Fountaine Pajot’s 36-foot MY4.S is the French boatbuilder’s new entry point in a power-catamaran lineup that includes the MY5 (formerly the MY 40), MY6 (formerly the MY 44) and Power 67. The company says the series’ re-badging reflects the sense of volume and space people feel on board these yachts when compared with similar-length monohull vessels (the 40-foot cat feels more like a 50-foot monohull and so on).

With the MY4.S, the effect is illustrated in the catamaran’s 16-foot-8-inch beam. This girth creates side decks that can be transited without turning the body sideways, enhancing safety. The beam also opens up room for a two- to three-person foredeck sun-pad area measuring about 51 square feet.

In the cockpit, the builder used the available real estate for U-shaped transom seating on centerline that can be outfitted with a table for alfresco meals or arranged as another sunning space. To starboard of the seating is an outdoor grill. Two sets of steps flanking the seating provide access to the swim platform, which also is nearly full-beam and outfitted with a ladder for easy water access.

The vessel’s main deck has one-level living from the cockpit to the helm fully forward. The galley is aft and to port to serve guests indoors and outdoors. The galley has a 6.3-cubic-foot fridge, a two-burner electric cooktop, a microwave and a sink. Across from the galley are a settee and folding table for casual dining and/or meals on rainy days.

The salon is kept bright via nearly 360 degrees of glass and an overhead sunroof with an electrically opening skylight option.

The helm has room for one multi- function display, seating for two, single-lever controls to port, and a lounge seat for one to starboard.

Belowdecks, the MY4.S can have a three- or four-stateroom setup. The Maestro layout has three staterooms and two heads, with the master stateroom taking up the port hull. In this layout, the master measures about 96.8 square feet and has a berth for two, a settee and an en suite head forward. A hullside window measuring 1.34 feet tall by 4.2 feet wide lets in natural light and enhances the area’s sense of space. Two guest staterooms to starboard are separated by a head.

In the four-stateroom, two-head layout called Quatuor, the starboard-side stays the same, but the master loses the settee, a head goes in its place, and what was the head becomes the fourth stateroom.

Standard power for the Fountaine Pajot MY4.S is a pair of 150 hp Yanmar diesels, with twin 250 hp Yanmars optional. The builder projects a top hop around 22 knots and a maximum range of 1,000 nautical miles on the vessel’s 316-gallon fuel capacity.

Take the next step: fountaine-pajot.com

The post Fountaine Pajot Debuts MY4.S Powercat appeared first on Yachting.