The America’s Cup, the oldest continuous sporting event in the world, has always fostered development-class yacht design and racing. This year the teams from six nations will be competing in 75-foot foiling catamarans that regularly sail at 50 knots or more.
So, what kind of support boat could keep up with the sailing monsters and do so with zero-carbon emissions? For the answer the team American Magic, representing the New York Yacht Club, turned to the Italian boat builder Bluegame who came up with an innovative design for a foiling power cat driven by a hydrogen fueled engine.
The foiling cat rises onto its foils so it can soar over the tops the wave and will achieve top speeds of 50 knots or more. The prototype was delivered to American Magic this week in a ceremony in La Spezia.
The design caught the attention if the French America’s Cup Team Orient Express whichhas ordered one as their support vessel.
Bluegame and its customers investing heavily in the research and development of the foiling cat and its hydrogen powered engine. With this technology now up and running, the builder is planning to design and build a range of similar boats to be marketed as BGF Yachts. Read more here
