Feadship Launch 45m "Blue Sky"

Blue Sky

Feadship have launched their 45m "Blue Sky" in a ceremony that combined Chinese and Dutch maritime cultures. This is the first superyacht to be built by a Western shipyard for a client in mainland China. The owner sent his personal representative to accept delivery of a fabulous Feadship that includes her own helicopter deck and dedicated karaoke and Mah-jong rooms.

The colourful launch event included a wide range of Chinese influences, including lion dancers. Blue Sky was jointly christened by the owner's representative (it is traditional for males to perform the ceremony in China) and Jeanette van Mil, wife of Operational Director Peter van Mil (maintaining the European tradition of a lady cracking the champagne bottle).

Feadship director Dick van Lent hailed this as an example of the cross-cultural symbiosis that had been the hallmark of the cooperation during the construction of Blue Sky. "We are very proud to have partnered with the owner, who is a pioneer in his country when it comes to owning the very best motoryacht that money can buy," he commented during his speech.

"It is also a great honour for Feadship to complete the order for an exclusive superyacht for the People's Republic of China. Feadship made history by being the first Western yard to deliver to South America in the 1930s. We were the first European yard to build custom yachts for the United States in the 1950s and in the Middle East a decade later. Having also led the way over recent decades in Africa and other areas of the Far East, everyone at Feadship is delighted to now do the same in China."

Blue Sky has a steel hull and aluminium superstructure, with an exterior styling by Feadship and Sinot Yacht Design. The interior design is by Bannenberg & Rowell Design who combined with Sinot Yacht Design. "We very much enjoyed the smooth cooperation with the owners and their representatives in China," says Dickie Bannenberg. "Blue Sky features a fresh contemporary interior with lots of lightweight loose furniture. The sky deck lounge is a dedicated karaoke space with an 85-inch television, while the Mah-jong room is found aft of the wheelhouse and includes a state-of-the-art table that shuffles the tiles and deals the dice automatically. This room can also be converted into an additional cabin with its own bathroom."

Specifications

• Length: 44.65m (146'6ft)
• Beam: 9.20m (30'2ft)
• Draft: 2.70m (8'10ft)
• Max Speed: 14.5kts
• Range: Transatlantic