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90m Sailing yacht Athena – the largest superyacht to be refitted in New Zealand

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Written by Chelsea Smith

The 90.00m (295′ 3″) Royal Huisman sailing yacht Athena is due to arrive in New Zealand to receive a superyacht refit by Orams Marine Services. One of the world’s largest private sailing yachts of the modern era and the largest all-aluminum yacht built to date, the three-masted schooner Athena is a remarkable super yacht.

Super Sailing yacht Athena by Royal Huisman being refitted in New Zealand

S/Y Athena is built entirely of high-tensile Alustar and she is a giant which displaces a staggering 1,177 tons. Not only is she the largest but she has been created to the highest standards of traditional craftsmanship whilst incorporating inspiring technical achievement.

The refit of super yacht Athena is being carried out by Orams Marine Services. Established in 1947, Orams Marine Services have developed a reputation as a premium provider of building and maintenance services for all types of vessels. Orams Marine Services were the first company to bring a superyacht into  New Zealand for an interior alteration and refit in 1987. Since then they have established themselves as a key player in New Zealand’s superyacht refit industry.

Managing director of Orams Marine Services Craig Park confirmed the exterior of sailing yacht Athena is being re-painted and the interior re-varnished. “It’s the biggest boat to be refitted in New Zealand,” he says. “It’s a full re-paint; it’s the first since the launch. It’s really a cosmetic re-fit although all five engines will be serviced.”

ATHENA’s three masts soar 197 feet above the deck supporting 28,632 square feet of sail. Her beauty is obvious, but yacht Athena is also the sort of marvel we have come to expect from Royal Huisman and the myriad Dutch industries pressed into service to ensure her timely delivery while meeting the owner’s demand for the highest quality.

Sailing yacht Athena Main Salon - the largest superyacht to be refitted in New Zealand

Superyacht ATHENA’s interior design is by Rebecca Bradley. The yachts bridge Deck features an open air lounge, media lounge, lobby and powder room. The main deck of Athena yacht features a formal dining salon, library, main salon with wet bar and an alfresco dining area.  She also features roomy foyers, hallways and satellite seating areas.

Sailing yacht Athena's Dining Room

Schooner ATHENA provides accommodation for up to 10 guests in 5 cabins:  The lower deck is comprised of the full width master cabin with full width master bath with Spa Pool, the Owner’s Office, walk-in wardrobe, 3 Queen sized Cabins, a Twin Cabin, the crew area and a diving platform.

Sail yacht Athena was awarded the “Show Boats International” Award for “Best Sailing Yacht over 40 Meters for 2004” as awarded in Monaco in June 2005. ATHENA was also nominated also for “Show Boats International” awards for the “Highest Technical achievement in a sailing yacht” and “Best Sailing Yacht Interior”. She also holds a prestigious award by KNVTS Royal Huisman Shipyard and ATHENA was recognized by the Royal Dutch Corporation for Shipping Technicians.

ATHENA sailing yacht was the last yacht to be launched before Wolter Huisman’s death; paying homage to a man whose name is synonymous with the best in superyacht building.

Sailing yacht Athena’s  Specifications and Sail Plan

Design: Type: Three Masted Schooner Yacht. Naval Architects: Pieter Beeldsnijder Design and Gerard Dijkstra & Partners. Interior Styling: Pieter Beeldsnijder Design. Builder:Royal Huisman Shipyard.

Specifications: L.o.a. spars: 90.00 mtr. (295.28 ft.) L.o.a. hull: 79.25 mtr. (260.01 ft.) L.o.d.: 77.04 mtr. (252.76 ft.) L.c.w.l.: 60.52 mtr. (198.56 ft.) Beam max.: 12.20 mtr. ( 40.03 ft.) Draft (incl. keel): 5.50 mtr. ( 18.04 ft.) Mast height: 60.00 mtr. (196.85 ft.) Bowsprit length: 13.97 mtr. ( 45.83 ft.) Displ. c.w.l.: 1,068 tons (2,354,497 lbs) Ballast: 221.5 tons (488,316 lbs) Hull speed: 18.9 knots

Please contact CharterWorld - the luxury yacht charter specialist - for more on superyacht news item "90m Sailing yacht Athena - the largest superyacht to be refitted in New Zealand".

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90M CUSTOM SAILING YACHT

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Former Microsoft boss’ $15m superyacht spotted at Port of Aberdeen

The yacht belongs to Nathan Myhrvold, Microsoft's former chief technology officer.

A $15m superyacht owned by tech boss Nathan Myhrvold has berthed at the Port of Aberdeen this week.

The impressive vessel was spotted docked along Regent Quay in the North Harbour, its sleek design standing out against other larger work vessels docked.

Named Teleost the 160ft yacht was built in 1998 at a cost of $15m by renowned shipbuilders Feadship.

The interior is tastefully decorated and incorporating the 90s aesthetic with plush furnishings and dark wood panelling.

Some unique features included two tenders on the back as well as a hot tub on the fly bridge.

The yacht can reach a top speed of 15 knots.

Owner Nathan Myhrvold was a prominent figure at Microsoft during the 1980 and 90s culminating in his position as Chief Technology Officer in 1996.

In 2000 he started a new company called Intellectual Ventures which deals with patents, which has become very lucrative.

The tech boss is now worth more than $700m.

Teleost is the second superyacht to make an appearance in Aberdeen following the Elysian, a £66m craft owned by John W Henry – a major shareholder in Liverpool FC.

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Liverpool FC owner’s £66 million superyacht spotted off Broughty Ferry

Elysian, owned American businessman John W Henry, has a helipad and heated pool.

A £66 million superyacht belonging to Liverpool FC owner John W Henry has been spotted off Broughty Ferry.

Elysian, a 66-metre-long vessel, docked in the Tay – between Broughty Ferry and Tayport – on Monday morning.

It travelled to the Tay from Aberdeen, where it was berthed over the weekend.

Locals said those on board the luxury yacht appeared to be using a smaller boat to reach the shore.

Superyacht Elysian visits the Tay

It is understood Henry was among them.

The yacht has since moved out towards Barry Buddon.

One onlooker said: “I think it belongs to the owner of a Premier League football team as I’d read it was up in Aberdeen yesterday .

“We were walking along the beach this morning when we spotted it.

“You think they’d rather be in the Mediterranean at this time of year with a boat like that.”

Elysian’s arrival in the Tay was mentioned by  Liverpool fan group KopTalkTV on YouTube .

In the video, the host said: “Don’t assume that he is in the UK just because the yacht’s in the UK.

John Henry’s superyacht spotted off Broughty Ferry after Liverpool game

“Maybe if you see him at the game then he’s obviously there, and what happened – he turned up at the game .”

The reason for the visit has not been confirmed but some locals have speculated Henry may be heading to the Old Course in St Andrews.

The yacht, which sails under the Cayman Islands flag, was built in Germany.

With a top speed of 16.5 knots, it has an outdoor swimming pool, helipad, spa centre and gym and glass lift.

There is room on board for up to 12 guests and 17 crew.

Previously named Ester III, the yacht was once owned by Russian entrepreneur Georgy Bedzhamov.

American businessman Henry – who also owns the Boston Red Sox and Pittsburgh Penguins – bought the ship in 2016.

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Exiled russian oligarch’s 257’ superyacht amaryllis seen towed through palm beach.

The Amaryllis being towed past the former mansion of Henry Flagler, built in 1902

By John Jannarone and Alan Hatfield

The 257’ superyacht Amaryllis apparently owned by exiled Russian oligarch Andrey Borodin was towed past Palm Beach, FL on Friday morning, according to a visual account by CorpGov .

The yacht, whose owner is frequently cited as Mr. Borodin by enthusiast publications, moved slowly through the Lake Worth lagoon where bridges were raised for its passage. A towboat with flashing lights about 150 feet ahead pulled the Amaryllis , built by German shipyard Abeking & Rasmussen in 2011.

While CorpGov could not officially confirm Mr. Borodin as the owner of the vessel, his wife, socialite Tatiana Korsakova, has posted dozens of Instagram photos and videos aboard the Amaryllis. A yacht broker interviewed by CorpGov confirmed that Ms. Korsakova is indeed aboard the Amaryllis in the photos and videos.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tatiana Korsakova (@tati_vk)

The sighting comes as billions of dollars in Russian-owned yachts have been seized around the world as a result of international sanctions. CNN has published an extensive list of seized vessels, which were taken in harbor cities including Mallorca, Spain and London.

However, it is unclear if the Amaryllis was being seized or voluntarily towed. Very large yachts often choose to be towed because bridges are required to raise for them, according to the yacht broker.

The former Bank of Moscow chief was granted political asylum in the UK in February 2013 after fleeing what he alleged to be politically-motivated fraud and embezzlement charges. Mr. Borodin would go on to be tried and convicted in abstentia in Russian Court in 2018, but not before managing to enlist a number of prominent American lawmakers to lobby Washington for a U.S. visa. Despite Russian extradition requests to the UK government, Borodin’s controversial attempts to make large donations to the NHS, and the uncovering of an assassination plot against his life, the fugitive banker remains overseas, having been granted access to his Swiss bank accounts and having made several notable London real estate purchases during his time in exile.

Mr. Borodin is widely listed as a billionaire, but his total wealth remains difficult to confirm accurately, with the governments of Switzerland and the Bahamas having been asked to help the Russian government in its legal case. In 2012, Borodin purchased the UK’s then-most expensive home, an 80-hectare 18th-century estate in Oxfordshire, for upwards of $217 million. In 2017 he was granted access to personal Swiss accounts holding a reported $378 million. The Amaryllis was purchased for a reported $120 million.

Mr. Borodin did not immediately respond to an emailed query from CorpGov , while the FBI declined to comment. An emailed query to The Department of Homeland Security was not returned.

www.CorpGov.com

[email protected]

Twitter: CorpGovernor

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90m Royal Huisman schooner Athena enters refit at Lürssen

The 90-metre Royal Huisman sailing yacht Athena has arrived at Lürssen 's facilities in Hamburg for a substantial refit. She joins another sailing yacht known as Eos , a 92.9-metre Lürssen that returned for a refit in October 2023.

Works will include comprehensive interior updates, as well as repairs and refurbishments to her masts and rigging.

Athena was designed by Dykstra Naval Architects and Pieter Beeldsnijder and was delivered to much industry acclaim in 2004. The sailing yacht was inspired by classic schooners but benefits from "state-of-the-art" engineering and sail handling gear, including in-mast and in-boom furling. She still remains one of the world's largest sailing yachts.

Accommodation is for 12 guests in five cabins configured as a full-beam master suite, three doubles with queen-size beds and a twin cabin with two Pullman berths, and all with en suite bathroom facilities.

Athena last underwent an extensive refit at Royal Huisman in 2019 .

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Luxury yachts and other myths: How Republican lawmakers echo Russian propaganda

Two senior Republican lawmakers, the chairs of the House Intelligence and Foreign Affairs committees, say their colleagues are echoing Russian state propaganda against Ukraine.

Researchers who study disinformation say Reps. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, and Michael McCaul, R-Texas, are merely acknowledging what has been clear for some time: Russian propaganda aimed at undermining U.S. and European support for Ukraine has steadily seeped into America’s political conversation over the past decade, taking on a life of its own.

McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Puck News he thinks “Russian propaganda has made its way into the United States, unfortunately, and it’s infected a good chunk of my party’s base.”

Turner, chair of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, told CNN that anti-Ukraine messages from Russia are “being uttered on the House floor.”

For the past decade, since Russia’s first military incursion into Ukraine in 2014, Moscow has spread propaganda and disinformation in a bid to undercut U.S. and European military support for Ukraine, according to U.S. and Western officials.

Some of the arguments, distortions and falsehoods spread by Russia have taken root, mostly among right-wing pro-Trump outlets and Republican politicians, researchers say, including that Ukraine’s government is too corrupt to benefit from Western aid and that the Biden family has alleged corrupt ties to Ukraine.

Russia, in keeping with traditional propaganda techniques, seeks to make its case and tarnish Ukraine through a mixture of outright falsehoods, half-truths, inferences or simply amplifying and promoting arguments already being made by American or European commentators and politicians, researchers say.

The propaganda is sometimes spread covertly, through fake online accounts, or openly by Russian officials and state media. As a result, the origin of some allegations or criticisms is often opaque, especially when a certain accusation or perception has gained wide acceptance, leaving no clear fingerprints.

Early in the war, a false story boosted by Russian propaganda — that the U.S. had helped Ukraine build biological weapons labs — gained traction on right-wing social media and was touted by then-Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

Russia also is conducting a parallel propaganda campaign in Europe. Belgium’s prime minister said Thursday that his government is investigating alleged Russian bribes to members of the European Parliament as part of Moscow’s campaign to undermine support for Ukraine. Czech law enforcement officials last month alleged that a former pro-Russian member of Ukraine’s parliament, Viktor Medvedchuk, was behind a Prague-based Russian propaganda network designed to promote opposition to aiding Ukraine.

Here are some examples of Republican lawmakers using arguments often promoted by Russian propaganda:

Buying yachts

When Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with members of Congress behind closed doors in December to appeal for more U.S. help for his country’s troops, some lawmakers raised questions about Ukraine allegedly buying yachts with American aid money.

Zelenskyy made clear that was not the case, according to Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, a strong supporter of arming Ukraine. “I think the notion of corruption came up because some have said we can’t do it, because people will buy yachts with the money,” Tillis told CNN. “[Zelenskyy] disabused people of those notions.”

Where did the yacht rumor come from?

Pro-Russian actors and websites promoted a narrative alleging Zelenskyy bought two superyachts with U.S. aid dollars. One Russia-based propaganda site, DC Weekly , published a story last November that included photos of two luxury yachts, called Lucky Me and My Legacy , which it alleged were bought for $75 million.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., a vocal opponent of military aid to Ukraine, in November retweeted a post about the alleged yacht purchase from the Strategic Culture Foundation, a Russian-based propaganda outlet directed by Russia’s intelligence services, according to the Treasury Department. The U.S. has imposed sanctions on the organization, accusing it of spreading disinformation and interfering in U.S. elections.

Another outspoken critic of aid to Ukraine, Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, also made a similar claim.

In a December interview with former President Donald Trump’s White House adviser Steve Bannon, Vance claimed that members of Congress wanted to cut Social Security benefits to provide more aid to Ukraine, and that money would allegedly be used for Zelenskyy’s ministers to “buy a bigger yacht.”

“There are people who would cut Social Security, throw our grandparents into poverty. Why? So that one of Zelenskyy’s ministers can buy a bigger yacht?” Vance said. “Kiss my ass, Steve. It’s not happening.”

The tale of Zelenskyy’s luxury yacht, however, turned out to be totally false . The yachts cited in the DC Weekly article remain up for sale , the owners told The Associated Press.

Two academics at Clemson University, disinformation researchers Darren Linvill and Patrick Warren, found that DC Weekly ran numerous stories copied from other sites that were rewritten by artificial intelligence engines. The articles had bylines with fake names along with headshots copied from other online sites. DC Weekly appeared to be a Russian effort to launder false information through a seemingly legitimate news site as part of an attempt to undermine U.S. support for Ukraine, according to the researchers .

Asked by reporters about Vance’s comments, Tillis said: “I think it’s bullshit. ...If you’re talking about giving money to Ukrainian ministers — total and unmitigated bullshit.”

Greene’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Vance’s spokesperson said the senator was making a rhetorical point about how he opposed sending U.S. assistance to what he sees as a corrupt country, but was not asserting the yacht stories online were accurate.

Vance’s office referred NBC News to an earlier response to the BBC on the same topic:

“For years, everyone in the West recognized that Ukraine was one of the most corrupt countries in the world. Somehow everyone forgot that just as we started sending them billions of dollars in foreign aid.”

Enabling ‘corruption’

Russian state media for years has painted Ukraine as deeply corrupt, and has argued that the U.S. and its allies are wasting money and military hardware by assisting such an allegedly corrupt government.

“This is absolutely a line that they have pushed, and then once it appears in the Western ecosystem, other [Russian] media picks it up and it gets recycled back,” said Bret Schafer, a senior fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy.

This line of argument has gained traction partly because Ukraine does face a genuine corruption problem.

Russia’s effort to focus attention on corruption in Ukraine reflects a long-established propaganda method of using facts or partial truths to anchor a broader assertion or accusation, sometimes making a leap in logic, Schafer and other researchers said. Russia’s message amounts to: Ukraine is corrupt, therefore U.S. and Western aid will be stolen and wasted.

Schafer said it was ironic for Russia, a country mired in corruption and kleptocracy, to be leveling accusations about corruption.

Republican Rep. Mary Miller has said she strongly opposes more assistance for Ukraine because it amounts to sending cash to “corrupt oligarchs.”

“With Zelensky coming to DC this week to ask for more money, I will continue to vote AGAINST sending your tax $$ to corrupt oligarchs in Ukraine for a proxy war that could have ended in ‘22,” Miller wrote in a post on X in December.

The Illinois lawmaker also echoed another assertion that often appears in Russian media, that the Biden administration allegedly undermined efforts by Russia to avoid war with Ukraine.

 “A peace deal was on the table that [Ukraine] and [Russia] were both ready to sign, but Biden said NO,” she wrote.

There was in fact no proposed peace agreement that Russia and Ukraine were prepared to sign before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, according to U.S. and European officials. As Russian troops massed on the border of Ukraine, Western governments urged Russia not to invade and warned there would be economic and diplomatic consequences.

Reuters has reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected a possible deal to avert a war that had been discussed with Kyiv by Russia’s envoy to Ukraine. The Kremlin said the report was inaccurate and has said Russia tried for years to arrive at an understanding with Ukraine.

As for corruption in Ukraine, Zelenskyy has vowed to tackle the problem, sacking senior officials in some recent cases. But some civil society groups have criticized his approach and Ukrainians say corruption is the country’s second-most serious problem, after the Russian invasion, according to a poll conducted last year.

In an annual survey, Transparency International said Ukraine made progress toward addressing the issue and now ranks 104th out of 180 countries on its Corruption Perceptions Index , climbing 12 places up from its previous ranking.

Ukraine is not alone among countries that receive U.S. and other foreign aid but struggle with corruption. Supporters of assisting Ukraine argue it would undermine America’s influence in the world and its humanitarian efforts if Washington withheld foreign aid from every country where there were reports of corruption.

Miller’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

The Biden family and Ukraine

Republicans have repeatedly alleged that President Joe Biden and his son Hunter have corrupt ties to Ukraine, and that they sought $5 million in bribes from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma to protect the firm from an investigation by Ukraine’s prosecutor general.

There is no credible evidence for the allegations. A key source for the accusations against the Bidens is a former FBI informant, Alexander Smirnov, who was arrested in February on federal charges of fabricating the bribery claims. Smirnov says he was fed information by Russian intelligence.

Republicans had heavily promoted Smirnov’s allegations against the Bidens, seeing them as crucial to a planned impeachment effort against the president that has since fizzled .

“In my estimation, that is probably the clearest example of Russian propaganda working its way into the American political system,” said Emerson Brooking, a resident senior fellow at the Digital Forensic Research Lab of the Atlantic Council.

GOP Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona cited the false bribery allegations in expressing his opposition to providing assistance to Ukraine.

“In exchange for … bribe money from Ukraine, Joe Biden has dished out over $100 billion in taxpayer money to fund the war in Ukraine. I will not assist this corruption by sending more money to the authoritarian Ukrainian regime,” Gosar said in a statement in October.

Gosar’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Dan De Luce is a reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit. 

Syedah Asghar is a Capitol Hill researcher for NBC News and is based in Washington, D.C.