The World’s Biggest Sailing Ship Belongs to Russian Billionaire Andrey Melnichenko
Have you seen the world’s biggest sailing ship? The boat belongs to Russian billionaire Andrey Igorevich Melnichenko and has cost him £260 million.
The 43-year-old was born in Belarus and is married to a former Serbian model. He was named as the 97th wealthiest person on the planet by Forbes, and the ninth richest in Russia.
The billionaire presented his newest acquisition, a 300ft high yacht, which has eight floors and an underwater observation room.
He has bought the sailing ship because he wanted to replace his old £190 million boat.
With a cruise speed of 18mph and a top speed of 24mph, the hull is made of steel, with a teak-finish deck.
At 468ft in length, and called “Sailing Yacht A” is the biggest sailing ship in the world.
Special build by a German shipyard, the yacht has been made specifically for the Russian billionaire Andrey Igorevich Melnichenko.
When money isn’t a problem for you, you can afford to found the fertilizer producer EuroChem, and buy a bigger boat, right? Especially when your net worth is estimated at £6billion.
And that’s the exact thing the Russian billionaire has done as he has upgraded his £190million superyacht for a new model, at a cost of £260million.
It is believed that the billionaire named the sailing yacht “A”, because he wanted to ensure it is listed first in shipping registers.
The yacht is making its first contact with the water in Kiel, northern Germany. It was built at a shipbuilding yard near Hamburg, Germany, and designed by Frenchman Philippe Starck.
The largest sailing boat in the world has three huge masts and a price tag of £260 million and helps its owner Andrey Melnichenko to rule the seas one step further.
This vessel features a staggering eight decks and its keel incorporates one of the largest single pieces of curved glass ever made at 193 square feet and weighs 1.8 tons.
Superyachtfan.com reports that the boat is powered by a ‘hybrid diesel-electric package with controllable pitch propellers,’ and is designed to accommodate 20 guests and a crew of 54.
Mr Melnichenko is expected to recover some of the costs by licensing the technology developed for the vessel for commercial applications.
Motor Yacht A was Andrey Melnichenko’s first purchase, and now he has moved into the sailing side of the industry.
The yacht will have a high-tech digital control system operated using a touch sensitive sheet of black glass in the bridge.
This will allow the crew to raise and lower the sails and even drop the anchor with a brush of their fingers.
What do you think about Russian billionaire Andrey’s yacht?
