Flying Dutchman (boat)

The Flying Dutchman (FD in summary) is a creation of the naval architect Dutch Van Essen drawn for speed and planning.

This name was chosen, not without humor, by its creator, at the same time in reference to the first light sailing ships able to plane create by English Uffa Fox and who was all called Flying… X… (mention length in feet, the such flying fourteen) and with legendary the " Dutch stealing " mythical sailing ship supposed to be used as hell floating to the bad sailors, who inspired an opera with Richard Wagner.

Equip with a trapezoid and a spinnaker, and of a génois (outer jib with covering), encumbered tens of meters of fine ropes allowing of multiples and complex adjustments, 6,05 M length, it is a center-board with two team-members maximalist, very fast, expensive and sophisticated.

A long time Olympic series, it knew an intense research for the improvement of the performances: Use of moulded wood, then high performance polyester and fibers (carbon and kevlar) for the hull, invention of the double swallower of spi (Pajot brothers with the OJ of 1972) its long and light hull appears rather fragile and ages rather quickly.

Great champions practiced the FD, in particular the English Rodney PATTISSON, true cox main of the series, the brothers Yves and Marc PAJOT (France) Medal of money in Kiel in 1972, brothers DIESCH (Germany) the twin brothers Vollebreght (Holland) or Spanish cox ABASCAL.

Among the many artisanal building sites having built in all small series of the FD one can quote Bob Hoare (England) Lanaverre (France) Bianchi E Cecchi (Italy) Mader and Hein (Germany).

Sources: Veil and Regatta of the brothers Pajot Editions EMOM/Neptune

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