FINALLY SHIPS FROM AMAZON
Bezos’ long-delayed $500M yacht sets sail
Hoist up the Jeff B sails. Amazon honcho Jeff Bezos’ $500 million superyacht Koru — code named Y721 — is finally sea ready.
The vessel was spotted in the North Sea after leaving Rotterdam in The Netherlands on Feb. 13, footage from the organization Dutch Yachting shows.
The 417-foot boat’s test run came months after it was originally set to be delivered to the 59-year-old billionaire.
It requires a 250-foot support vessel that houses a helicopter landing pad for the Blue Origin founder.
Bezos’ mega boat created controversy last year after a report that Dutch officials would have to dismantle the historic Koningshaven Bridge because the 130foot steel structure wouldn’t allow the vessel and its 229-foot masts pass underneath.
Mast protest
Following an uproar from residents, local leaders decided the plan was a bridge too far — and the boat was towed without masts from its construction location to another shipyard in a nearby town, according to Jalop- nik. The backlash likely played a big part in how and when the Koru would float away.
Citizens of Rotterdam reportedly swore in February that, should Bezos’s superyacht traverse the De Hef bridge, they would pelt it with eggs in protest.
So when it finally came time to move the vessel out of its Dutch shipbuilding yard, the decision was made to tow it away under cover of darkness, The Cut reported.
Hardly on ‘sail’
Koru costs about $25 million a year to run. The pleasure boat can accommodate 18 guests — and requires a crew of 40 sailors.
Yet it is far from the world’s most expensive yacht.
That dubious honor is reserved for the $4.8 billion History Supreme — a gold and platinumplated vessel featuring a Tyrannosaurus
rex bone wall made of meteoric stone. It was bought in 2011 by an anonymous Malaysian businessman, according to The Richest.
But the half-billion price tag is still a relative drop in the ocean for the Amazon founder, whose net worth was valued at $181 billion by Forbes.
It gets ‘boater’
Koru will join a fleet of superyachts, helicopters and planes already owned by the entrepreneur and his millionaire girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez. The aluminum and steel schooner reportedly boasts three decks including one with a swimming pool.
The smaller 250-foot support vessel that will sit alongside the mammoth one will include a helicopter landing pad for Bezos or his celebrity guests.
This smaller yacht is also expected to be loaded with an array of vehicles, including luxury cars, jet skis, speedboats and perhaps even a personal submarine, the Daily Mail has reported.