You can tell a lot about a yard’s history, ambition and capabilities by taking a closer look at its flagship — the largest delivered yacht in the fleet. We round-up nine of the most significant flagship yachts on the water today.

We start with the mother of all flagships, the largest superyacht in the world, 180 metre Azzam. Designed by Nauta and launched by the German yard Lürssen in 2013, her immense size is reflective of the yard’s dominance of the higher end of the market, with the six largest yachts in the world all built by either Lürssen or its new sister company Blohm+Voss.

Not only is the monumental Sailing Yacht A the largest to be built at German yard Nobiskrug, she is also widely recognised as the largest sailing yacht in the world (although her owner describes her to be a sail-assisted motor yacht).

Delivered in 2017, Sailing Yacht A’s iconic exterior was styled by Philippe Starck, who also penned a top-secret interior that encompasses a total volume of 12,700GT.

Delivered by Oceanco in summer 2017, 110 metre Jubilee holds three prestigious records: largest Oceanco yacht, largest yacht built in the Netherlands and largest yacht exhibited at the Monaco Yacht Show. Currently offered for sale with Burgess, she boast a unique topographical exterior, created by Igor Lobanov, while Australian designer Sam Sorgiovanni styled her interiors with a décor inspired by the Moroccan city of Casablanca.

As you might expect from the flagship of the venerable Dutch yard Feadship, Symphony is a yacht comprised of some truly impressive numbers. Aside from her length of 101.5 metres, she packs four MTU diesel engines that generate a grand total of 13,730hp. Symphony also boasts a maximum cruising range of 5,000 nautical miles at 12 knots — more than enough to see her across the Atlantic.

Her crown will be seized by the 110 metre Feadship Project 1007, styled inside and out by Michael Leach Design, which is due for completion in 2018.

A highly secretive yacht, Aviva is reflective of her builders, Abeking & Rasmussen, who are notoriously tight-lipped about their spectacular superyacht projects. So it should come as little surprise that very few details are known about her, apart from her length (98 metres), build materials (steel and aluminium) and designers (Reymond Langton).

A 2016 launch for Italian yard Benetti, Lionheart is a highly secretive yacht, with few details known about her interior. Anchored off during the 2016 Monaco Yacht Show, she did reveal a few of her secrets, with fold-out balconies deployed and a drive-in tender garage put to good use.

Lionheart's reign as Benetti flagship will end in 2019, as this is when the Italian yard is due to complete the 107 metre motor yacht Project FB277.

Triple masted and instantly recognisable, Maltese Falcon has been turning heads all across the globe ever since her 2006 launch. Italian yard Perini Navi describes her freestanding carbon fibre masts as “weapons-grade”, while her Ken Freivokh designed interior is a marriage of industrial chic and high tech features. Technically a motorsailer, Maltese Falcon packs a pair of 2,010hp Deutz-MWM diesel engines that allow for a top speed under power of 19.5 knots.

Dutch yard Amels has enjoyed great success with its Limited Editions range, as designed by Tim Heywood, and Here Comes The Sun is the largest example to date. Delivered in January 2017 to a repeat client, she boasts an opulent Winch Design interior centred around a spectacular owner’s deck that spans a total of 300 square metres.

At this year's Monaco Yacht Show, Amels signed an order for a new-build 78 metre custom yacht that will boast a larger interior volume than Here Comes The Sun, despite being five metres shorter.

Launched in 2013 by CRN for a Middle Eastern owner, Chopi Chopi is the largest yacht to date from the Ferretti Group and the result of 660,000 working hours at the yard’s Ancona facility. Her graceful exterior styling by regular yard collaborator Zuccon International Project belies her record-breaking size, while the family-inspired decor was created by Laura Sessa Design.