BIGGEST SPORT-FISHER YET
ROYAL HUISMAN IS BUILDING A 171-FOOTER
Vripack yacht design and Royal Huisman, both in the Netherlands, have unveiled a few tantalizing details about Project 406—which is being built as the world’s largest sport-fishing yacht. ¶ Project 406 has a length overall of 171 feet. That means the vessel will dwarf not only the most sizable 80- to 105-footers from well-known sport-fish builders—such as Viking Yachts, Bayliss Boatworks and Jim Smith Tournament Boats—but also the behemoth one-off sport-fishers such as the 144-foot Trinity Bad Company, 130-foot McMullen & Wing Mea Culpa and 129-foot Yachting Developments Lanakai. As the team at Royal Huisman expressed this reality about Project 406, “This groundbreaking creation will be, by some distance, the largest, most luxurious and individual true sport-fish yacht in the world.” ¶ Aqua Marine is the owner’s representative on the project, with Vripack handling exterior as well as interior design. Technical management
will be the purview of Bush & Noble along with Hampshire Marine. ¶ Royal Huisman CEO Jan Timmerman calls Project 406 “the world’s first true sport-fish superyacht,” while Vripack co-creative director Bart M. Bouwhuis says it’s “a sport-fisher on steroids.” ¶ “It has the true proportions and long flaring bow of a typical American sport-fish boat paired with the harmonious feel of a luxurious superyacht,” Bouwhuis says. “It’s a supersize model with super-chic curves, realized on a grand scale.” ¶ Among the design elements Vripack is touting is a redesigned sky lounge, which will be like a theater with front-row views of the sport-fishing action in the cockpit. The superyacht is projected to come in at 499 gross tons, allowing for a top-end speed in the 30-knot range. ¶ “Project 406 is a true sportfisher, designed for a private owner who is serious about big-game fishing,” Bouwhuis says. ¶ Delivery of Project 406 is scheduled for 2023. Before then, Royal Huisman is expected to launch the 192-foot motoryacht Project Phi, which has a design the yard calls “radical.” ¶ It’s anyone’s guess what that word might come to mean in yacht construction next.