Inside the Maltese Falcon - Elena Ambrosiadou's Mega Yacht

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!

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.

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

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 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 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 Number of Guests: 12
Maltese Falcon Number of Crew: 16 (Up to additional 4)

Photo above: Maltese Falcon sailboat's bridge.

Photo above: Upper deck cabin on the yacht Maltese Falcon.

Photo above: A place to kick back on the mega yacht Maltese Falcon.

Photo above: Outside seating on the yacht Maltese Falcon.

Photo above: Outside dining on the Maltese Falcon mega yacht.

Image below: Diagram of the Maltese Falcon mega yacht.