The 289 foot (88m) Maltese Falcon is
the largest private sailboat in the world. This fine mega yacht changed owners
recently, and it is reported that the yacht finally sold to Elena Ambrosiadou
for the tidy sum of 120 million US dollars - a real bargain if you consider Tom
Perkins was originally asking $165 million. Ambrosiadou, who grew up in Greece,
is best known for setting up one of the most successful hedge funds in the
world, and was Britainâs best paid female executive before moving her company
Ikos to Cyprus in 2006. Although she appears to be shying away from the
publicity, she will now be known not only as one the world's top female
entrepreneurs, but as the owner of the world's most impressive sailboat.
Fact is, she is the only woman I could find who owns a mega yacht, anywhere!
![Maltese Falcon yacht]()
As far as the boat goes,
this sailing yacht's rig is impressive and complicated to say the least. It is
also efficient, reaching nearly 20 knots under sail alone. The Maltese Falcon sports what is called a
DynaRig, which means it is effectively a square rigger, and each of the three
freestanding masts support six yardarms, which are connected rigidly to the
mast. The yacht's 25,791 square feet (2,400 square meters) of sails are
set between the yards in such a way that when deployed there are no gaps to the
sail plan, enabling each spar's sails to work as a single airfoil. Unlike a
conventional square rigger, the yards have a built in camber of 12%, and the
sails are trimmed to the wind direction by rotating the entire mast, which is
operated by a sail control system on the bridge. When not deployed, the mega
yacht's sails furl right into the mast itself.
The Maltese Falconâs interior is as
luxurious as you'd expect, of course, with the main feature being the
atrium. Here, the three decks are united by a circular stairway,
surrounding the main mast, and creating a spiralling effect. This is all
enhanced by natural light streaming in from the top to the lower decks through
transparent floors. The main deck of the Maltese Falcon is a big open
space with a main saloon, a huge aft-cockpit, two studio areas and an impressive
dining room. For sleeping there are five lower deck staterooms and one passage
cabin on the upper deck with a private sun bathing area, and direct access to
the mega yacht's wheelhouse. As you can see in the photos, it's like a
spaceship with a lot of wood.
![Maltese Falcon]()
![Maltese Falcon submarine]()
For fun, the Maltese
Falcon carries two 32 foot Pascoe RIB Tenders (with water skis), four Laser
sailboats, and a 14 foot Castold Jet tender. In addition to dive gear, Maltese Falcon also carries a private
submarine for exploring the deep, which
was one of former owner Tom Perkins' favorite toys, and is strangely was one of
the reason he says he sold the Maltese Falcon: âMy pleasure comes from
the technical and aesthetic challenges of new yacht projects more than from
cruising aboard the finished boat. I would now like to indulge my interest in
âsportsâ submarines and maybe to build a specialized boat to use as a sub
carrier.â
And what does the new owner have to say about
the boat? Very little. It appears that she doesn't want to attract
too much attention to herself, which is kind of hard to do when you own the
world's biggest sailing yacht. I guess keeping a low profile means
different things to different people. What we do know is that she's well
proportioned, sleek, sexy, and her beauty draws a crowd wherever she goes - and
now she has an owner with the same qualities! Gentlemen: The line
forms behind ME.
- by Nick (don't tell my wife I
said that) Riley, exclusively for YachtPals.com
The Maltese Falcon Yacht
![yacht Maltese Falcon]()
Maltese Falcon Builder - Perini
Navi
Mega Yacht Built - 2006
Maltese Falcon Naval Architect -
Gerard Dijkstra & Partners and Perini Navi
Exterior & Interior
Styling for the Maltese Falcon - Ken Freivokh Design
Maltese Falcon Hull Material -
Steel
Maltese Falcon Superstructure Material -
Aluminium
Maltese Falcon LOA - 289 ft (88 m)
Maltese Falcon
Beam - 42.2 ft (12.6 m)
Maltese Falcon Draft (Dagger Board Up)
19.7 ft (6.0 m)
Maltese Falcon Draft (Dagger Board Down) 36 ft (11
m)
Maltese Falcon Waterline Length - 258.4 ft
Maltese Falcon
Displacement - 1240 tons
Fuel storage on Maltese Falcon - 81300
lt
Water storage on Maltese Falcon - 30000 lt
Engine: The Maltese
Falcon has two 1,800 horse-power Deutz engines with a top speed of 20 knots
running at 1,800 rpm.
![Maltese Falcon]()
Maltese Falcon Main Mast Height Above DWL -
179.9 ft
Maltese Falcon Mizzen Mast Height Above DWL - 180.2 ft
Maltese
Falcon Sail Area - 25791 ftÂ
![Maltese Falcon interior]()
Maltese Falcon Main Saloon and Wheelhouse Area -
3111 ftÂ
Maltese Falcon Owners and Guest Area - 4650 ftÂ
Maltese Falcon
Crew Area - 3154 ftÂ
Total Area: Flybridge and Cockpit - 3649 ftÂ
![Maltese Falcon interior]()
Maltese Falcon Number of Guests: 12
Maltese
Falcon Number of Crew: 16 (Up to additional 4)
![Maltese Falcon]()
Photo above: Maltese Falcon sailboat's bridge.
![Maltese Falcon]()
Photo above: Upper deck cabin on the yacht
Maltese Falcon.
![Maltese Falcon yacht]()
Photo above: A place to kick back on the mega
yacht Maltese Falcon.
![Maltese Falcon sailboat]()
Photo above: Outside seating on the yacht
Maltese Falcon.
![Maltese Falcon]()
Photo above: Outside dining on the Maltese
Falcon mega yacht.
Image below: Diagram of the Maltese Falcon mega
yacht.
![Maltese Falcon yacht]()
