It was a pretty busy year on the boatinternational.com website, with around 2,500 news stories posted during the course of 2012 and nearly 1 million page views. Here is a run-down of the Top 10 news stories from the site this year.
1 Yogi sinking
The loss of the superyacht Yogi, the 60.2 metre superyacht, off the coast of Greece in February, was the most viewed story on the site by a considerable distance. Built by Proteksan Turquoise in 2011, the yacht was reported to be in difficulties between the islands of Skyros and Psara, 19 nautical miles off the Greek coast. A ‘mechanical failure’ was blamed for the incident which happened in strong seas and Force 8 winds. No one was injured and all on board were rescued by the coastguard helicopter. Read the original story here.
2 Lurssen 180 scoop
In May we got our first glimpse of Project Azzam, a 180m Lurssen, as she left the main shed at its yard in Bremen. At the time we knew little about her, but what was clear was that she was nearer to 180m than the 170m she was rumoured to be, and significantly larger than Eclipse, the largest yacht in the world at the time. Read the original story here.
3 First glimpse inside Amaryllis
Another popular story was the first look inside the spectacular 78m Abeking & Rasmussen yacht Amaryllis. Project managed by Hill Robinson, and launched in November 2011, she is decorated in the Belle Époque, Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles. Reymond Langton Design created both her interior and exterior design. The result is a work of art, featuring a unique collection of loose furniture and wall panels by Silverlining among a range of simply beautiful features. Read the original story here.
4 Flying Fox (re)launched
In fourth place is the slightly unusual story of Flying Fox, nee Graffiti. In November 2011 we were the first to announce the launch of Graffiti, a 73.55 metre superyacht launched at Nobiskrug only two months after her sistership Mogambo. But Graffiti remained at the German yard, with rumours of an imminent sale circulating around the industry. In June the rumours were confirmed with the (re)launch of Graffiti under a new name, Flying Fox. Read the original story here.
5 Vava II leaves Pendennis
The largest private motor yacht ever built in the UK attaracted a lot of page views in 2012. The 96m motor yacht Vava II, was delivered to her owner in March and left the Pendennis Plus (formerly Devonport) yard for her maiden cruise to St Maarten in the Caribbean. This spectacular six-deck superyacht was built in utmost secrecy to a design by Redman Whiteley Dixon, with an interior by Remi Tessier and is SOLAS-36 classed to passenger ship standards. Read the original story here.
6 Futuristic trimaran Adastra launched
After a four year build at McConaghy Boats in Zhu Hai, China, the launch of the fuel efficient 42.5m trimaran Adastra was another popular story. Designed by UK-based John Shuttleworth Yacht Designs, Adastra is the second largest trimaran yacht ever built (the 61m White Rabbit being the biggest), and is the fourth largest powered multihull in the world. Read the original story here.
7 Topaz launch
The launch of Topaz was also an oft-viewed story. Superyacht Topaz was technically launched in May when she emerged from her floating shed at Lürssen’s Aumund yard. Very little was known about the motor yacht and even her exact length was a matter of speculation, although she was believed to be the second largest yacht to be launched by the German yard. While Lürssen were unable to confirm or deny any details about the project due to strict confidentiality agreements, we had it on good authority that she was longer than 144m with a beam of 21.5m. Read the original story here.
8 Mogambo joins charter fleet
In March we reported the delivery of Nobiskrug’s 74m motor yacht Mogambo and her availability for charter through David Price in the Antibes office of Hill Robinson. Mogambo accommodates up to 12 guests with a spectacular master suite on the main deck which includes a private terrace, a VIP cabin on the bridge deck plus two double and two convertible cabins on the lower deck. Read the original story here.
9 More details of Project Azzam
Unsurprisingly, Project Azzam continued to attract attention through the year, and as we published more details and photos, the page visits continued to rise. We got these photos in June, and interest in this exciting project continued unabated. Read the original story here.
10 Seanna joins the charter fleet
When stunning new superyachts come on to the charter market, it tends to attract a lot of attention, and Seanna was no different. The 65m Benetti motor yacht Seanna, launched in 2011, embarked on her inaugural Mediterranean charter season, represented by Burgess as central charter agents. Seanna accommodates 12 guests in seven cabins and is served by a crew of 16. The master cabin features his-and-hers bathrooms and dressing rooms, steam room and spa bath, lounge and study. Read the original story here.