Superyachts are nice and all, but most models value form over function. Sure, they look killer, but where is the storage space for your submarine, expedition-level dive center, private helicopter, and Jet Ski platoon? It’s a problem we can all relate to. Enter Yacht Support, a niche marine builder that designs satellite yachts to haul your entire arsenal of land and sea toys anywhere you need to take your “mothership.”
Today’s finest superyachts boast luxury amenities most of us can only dream of. The newly announced Acionna superyacht concept, for example, is an eight-deck, 575-foot absurdity complete with lap pools, squash courts, waterfalls, and helicopter hangars. It’s easy to assume that such a ship provides everything its owners might need on even the longest of long-haul trips like, say, a trans-Atlantic crossing. The problem is that most superyachts are designed to be luxurious, at the expense of usefulness. Even the largest superyachts lack the space to stow all the toys a well-heeled gentleman is likely to travel with.
Yacht Support is an ultra-high-end Dutch shipbuilder who crafts 100-percent custom support yachts. The company’s portfolio consists of 10 delivered and in-process yachts, many purpose-built to the owner’s needs. The sleek exteriors are designed to blend seamlessly into today’s superyacht “scene,” while the interiors feature high-end materials and upgraded finishes, so even the support personnel travels in luxury. Most models are designed to carry a dozen or more staff members including pilots, security muscle, dive guides, court jesters — whatever you’re into.
The entry-level (we use that term very loosely) YS 4508 is a 150-foot ship capable of functioning as a standalone vessel with a cruising range of 5,000 nautical miles. As a support vessel, however, it can haul several pleasure boats, a personal submersible, a helicopter, and plenty of smaller toys like kayaks, surfboards, dive gear, and more. The YS 6911 is an upgraded, 227-foot beast with a military-grade helideck, weather-protected hangar and lift system, and a fully outfitted professional dive center. There isn’t much this thing can’t haul. For the man who truly has it all, however, the company recommends a customized version of their flagship YS 7412. At 243 feet from stem to stern, she’s billed as the ultimate solution with unlimited capacity.
Yacht Support’s catalog features a handful of out-of-the-box solutions. However, most deliveries are heavily customized to suit the owners’ needs. As to cost, if you already have the keys to a superyacht, you can probably afford a second yacht to support it.
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