Watch: 80m+ yacht support vessel U-81 emerges from extensive conversion

An 80-metre-plus yacht support vessel named U-81 has been sighted for the first time in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, following an extensive conversion at the Zwijnenburg Yachting shipyard in Capelle aan den IJssel. 

The newly unveiled yacht support was once a 76.6-metre offshore supply vessel named FS Cygnus, delivered in 2014 by Norwegian shipyard Simek. Though details and dates remain undisclosed, it is believed that she was purchased by a private owner earlier this year, in March, who sought to convert the industrial vessel into a capable yacht support. She was sighted during her rebuild in May by yacht spotters, reportedly arriving at the shipyard to begin works in April.

Her name suggests that she is the successor to the 80.1-metre custom Damen Yachting support vessel U-81 (now Wingman), which was formerly the support vessel to Amels' 89-metre Here Comes the Sun and also spent time at the Zwijnenburg facilities. The custom Damen Yachting build was sold in April 2025, after which she became the support vessel to Feadship's 118-metre Launchpad. The newly converted U-81 is expected to be the new yacht support for the 102.5-metre Feadship yacht Ulysses.

Details of the conversion remain private, though young Dutch design firm Studio ZEA is rumoured to have been involved in the project, alongside Azure Yacht Design and Naval Architecture. She was previously designed by Ulstein Verft, who also completed the naval architecture, with her original specs including a 2,420GT, 16-metre beam and all-steel construction.

Images now reveal the yacht's new white hull colour (previously a bright shade of red), the addition of a helipad with a garage and a newly installed platform to protect a collection of tenders below. She is identifiable by the large U-81 typography on her hull.

According to BOATPro, U-81 is now cruising and en route to Gibraltar.

Conversion projects are not uncommon in the yachting industry. Earlier this year, a highly secretive 87.9-metre conversion project was also sighted for the first time on transport in Bremerhaven, Germany.