ACTION
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www.hydroptere.com
28 m
Front view
4,5 m
2000. The present boat, the Hydroptère DCNS, compensates for these blows with hydraulic cylinders on the hydrofoils, which are automatically controlled using data from numerous on-board sensors. The impact of the waves on the boat at full speed equates to the pressure on a plane during an emergency water landing. Consequently, the airplane maker Airbus followed the Hydroptère crew’s developments with great interest. The two companies even went as far as jointly registering a patent, which concerns the components of the boat being put together with rivets made from carbon rather than titanium. Airbus is looking to apply this innovation to its planes in order to reduce fuel costs. As The Red Bulletin went to press, Thébault and his team were waiting for optimal weather conditions for a new record attempt. They hope to sail from Los Angeles to Honolulu faster than another French sailor, Olivier de Kersauson, who in 2005 crossed the same stretch of Pacific Ocean in his trimaran in four days and 19.5 hours. It’s an adventure, but at the same time it’s much more than that: a high-seas reality check for the revolution in wind-driven seafaring.
24 m
Child of the digital drawing board In order to build the Hydroptère, the team developed simulation software called Hydrop 6, which predicts data for future sailing conditions (up to five years ahead) to optimise the boat for any situation. America’s Cup racing teams have already expressed interest in the software.
ILLUSTRATION : ALBERT EXERGIAN
T
his version of the classic flying dream plays out on the water, powered only by wind. When the Hydroptère hits 18kph, the boat’s three hulls rise up out of the water along the hydrofoil, reaching a height of 5m as speeds increase to record-breaking levels. In 2005 came the fastest crossing of the English Channel (average speed, 61kph). In 2007, the official world record speed over 500m (82.9kph). In 2008, that record was broken (86.8kph). That was the same year that the Hydroptère reached a top speed of 104kph, making it the fastest sailboat in the world. Since then, the team headed by French skipper Alain Thébault has been battling to transfer this achievement from calm, shallow waters to the high seas. Once the boat reaches 93kph, it meets a force of 30 tonnes of water per square metre. In waves, these forces slam into the boat and can cause explosions, a fate that put paid to a forerunner of the Hydroptère in
The 12m arm connecting the three hulls was produced by Airbus. For Airbus, the Hydroptère project serves as a test case for larger constructions. In the learning phase before construction of the A380, for example, a framework was used similar to that of the boat