Largest private yacht in the world is launched

[n2doc]

Sorry Roman. You've been eclipsed.

A new yacht launched Friday by Lürssen, the German luxury boatbuilder, is now the largest motor yacht in the world. It's name is Azzam, and at 590 feet long, it has officially bumped Roman Abramovich's yacht – the 536-foot Eclipse – from its number one ranking.

Lürssen won't comment on the ownership. But industry sources say the owner is likely the royal family of Abu Dhabi.

Lürssen will say that the boat was "without the a doubt the most challenging yacht that has ever been built." Aside from its sheer size, Azzam had to be super-fast and able to ply shallow waters "while providing luxurious and sophisticated accommodation to its guests."

Advertise | AdChoices

For speed, the boat is powered by jets rather than propellers. It's got 94,000 horsepower under the hood. And it hit a top speed of 30 knots, which is about 30 percent faster than most mega-yachts. "It's like a 590-foot jet ski," said one executive involved in the project.

more
http://www.nbcnews.com/business/largest-private-yacht-world-launched-1C9255045

[Paulie]

1. Not the most advanced looking design

[cbayer]

2. It probably gets about 1 inch to the gallon.

What an environmental disaster.

[Archae]

3. Something small being compensated for jokes in 3-2-1...

Gotta admit though, it did give the builders jobs.

[pinboy3niner]

4. We're gonna need...

...a bigger shark.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

37. Lulz!

[longship]

42. DUzy Award!

Wish our beloved DUzys were still about. Sadly they are not. So, I guess you'll have settle for winning the Internet.

[Broken_Hero]

54. ....

[Gidney N Cloyd]

61. Good one!

[Marrah_G]

5. Disgusting show of greed

[bullwinkle428]

6. 30 knots is supersonic for something that's 2 football fields long!

[Blue_Tires]

7. Sweet...Whoever owns that is a pimp

[bluedigger]

8. That's pretty cool.

Better than just having a shitpile of cash sitting in a vault, I guess.

[edhopper]

9. I had this for my signature for a while

looks like it's time to bring it back


"Rich Mother Fuckers have too much fucking money!"

[Initech]

11. [phone]

Really what do these greedy motherfuckers need with all this money? If you have more than a billion everything after that is pure greed. And all they do with it is just buy shit like this.

[Crepuscular]

13. shit like that

provides high paying skilled labor jobs to thousands of workers.......not sure what is wrong with that exactly.

[HangOnKids]

15. Care to cite some stats for that assertion?

"provides high paying skilled labor jobs to thousands of workers" , please let us know how that works?

[Crepuscular]

16. Kind of intuitive, don't you think?

Ship building is not exactly like digging ditches and yachts of that caliber are filled with finish work that will be done by highly skilled craftsmen. You seriously think that a ship that cost $600 million dollars, will not provide any high paying jobs?

[HangOnKids]

20. Where are your facts?

I did not say that craftsmen were not involved I asked how that translates into high paying jobs. The skyscrapers in Dubai require craftsmen to be built and yet the UAE uses slave labor from India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. So give me some facts, you have been playing this bait and switch game for a couple of weeks now, me I am not buying it.

[Crepuscular]

24. Built by Lurrsen

in Germany, which is not exactly known for using slave labor in their manufacturing sector (at least not in this century). They employ over 1,400 people. German manufacturing is kind of known for paying some of the highest wages in the EU for manufacturing jobs, no reason to think that the workers employed to build a $600 million dollar yacht would be unskilled, low wage workers. The ship took 3 years to build. If you factor in the production needed to supply the materials, it would easily account for thousands, if not tens of thousands of jobs during that time period. Have no idea what you are talking about...bait and switch?

[edhopper]

55. And what kind of slave wages did the owner pay

his own employees to amass that kind of wealth?
Or have you not realized the accumulation of wealth in this country has come at the cost of the stagnation of the middle and lower classes.

[OldDem2012]

58. They're skilled shipbuilders...they don't get paid "slave wages" because their reputation depends...

...on excellent workmanship.

Additionally, just in case you didn't know, Lurssen is located in Germany: http://www.lurssen.com/#en/start

[edhopper]

69. guess i wasn't clear

How did the owner get that rich? Who did he screw over and oppress to become that rich? What does he pay the people who work for him?
Do you think the Wall Street assholes come by their lamborginis honestly?

[OldDem2012]

71. Hmmm. Let's see....you seem intent on comparing a company that sells things....

....they actually make themselves, to companies that sell things that are totally borderline Ponzi schemes and intangible in nature. You're also comparing skilled shipbuilders to accomplished swindlers who should all be in prison.

Why do you assume this company is screwing anyone over to become rich? They worked hard to establish a reputation over five generations for building excellent yachts, and selling them to wealthy clients willing to pay huge amounts of money for the finished products. Why the hate?

[edhopper]

72. I'll try one more time

I am NOT talking about the boat company, I am talking about the man who bought the boat and how he amassed that kind of spare cash to buy such an extravagant toy.

There are too few people who have accumulated far too much wealth at the expense of the rest of the population.
If you don't see that, you are truly blind.
This boat is a symptom of that injustice.

[OldDem2012]

74. You should have tried that approach originally....

....you might have come across as a lot less confused than you appeared to be.

[edhopper]

75. Thought I did

but this is often the case with internet postings.
And here I thought it was you who were confused.

[Initech]

17. They are not in any way shape or form creating jobs.

If anything they're outsourcing jobs to China and India and getting tax breaks so the corrupt CEOs can gain even more wealth.

[Crepuscular]

21. Huh?

This ship was built in Germany by a company that has been in the ship building business for over 100 years and which employs over 1,400 people. How is that outsourcing jobs to China and India??

[HangOnKids]

22. You don't know that Germany imports cheap labor from China and SE Asia?

You think they pay German workers to build Audis BMWs and these ships. Jaysus. One would think you watch Fox news with that kind of thinking.

[Crepuscular]

26. Ok, provide us with some evidence

that this ship was built primarily with imported foreign labor from China and India. Or should we just take your word for it?

[HangOnKids]

32. It is all over the Google

Please do your homework. More bait and switch from you. Please you really need to drop out of the game dude, you are having a really hard time keeping up. It is really sad.

[Crepuscular]

33. "It's all over google"

translates into "I was talking out of my ass and can't support my claim" most of the time.

Kind of what I suspected.

[Initech]

23. You're not seriously defending the "job creators" are you?

Look up "wealth inequality". I could post hundreds of charts, graphs, and articles that prove corrupt CEOs do not deserve the wealth they have if you want.

[Crepuscular]

29. How they get their money

is another discussion but I don't have them spending it on something that provides workers with a large number of decent paying jobs. I don't mind rich people having nice stuff, does not bother me a bit. I'd rather see the royal family of the UAE buy a yacht like this then spend the money on some drones that would end up killing a bunch of innocent kids but I guess I'm funny that way.

[Initech]

30. True, I can't argue there!

[kestrel91316]

43. The only way the wealthy "create" jobs is by spending their ill-gotten gains

like drunken sailors. I support ANY AND ALL means of parting them from their money, and the sooner the better.

[Initech]

46. Can't argue there either!

[lumberjack_jeff]

45. Building 200, 40' long boats would employ the same number of workers.

Spreading the wealth would create more employment.

[Crepuscular]

50. then maybe you should sponsor a coup

and overthrow the government of the UAE. Go for it.

In the mean time, I don't have a problem with them buying yachts or learjets with their money, it puts a paycheck in some workers pocket.

Just out of curiosity, which middle eastern utopia would you model the new Government there after? Iran? Syria? Jordan? Just wondering.....

[edhopper]

56. How about a secular European

style social Democracy.
I guess you are of the opinion that people are destined to their fate, no matter how bad off they are.
We can't point out the awful condition in another country unless we can replace it with a utopia.
That's brilliant thinking.

[Crepuscular]

64. Good one!

Exactly how are you going to convince the local population, which is overwhelmingly Muslim with a small number of coptic xtians thrown in, to embrace a secular European style social democracy? You sound like George Bush trying to force Iraq to embrace Western Democracy, all it takes is a $6 Trillion dollar war and a few hundred thousand body bags.

[edhopper]

70. sure no muslim democracies

What a wonderfully condescending view you have of the Muslim world.
And obviously you see no other way to change anything but armed conflict.

[MineralMan]

10. Where's the damned trolling motor?

What kind of damned bass boat is that, anyways? Looks like I'd have to upgrade to a damned SuperDuty pickup to tow that damned thing!

[Yavin4]

12. "the owner is likely the royal family of Abu Dhabi" - So, Let's buy a yacht instead of alleviating..

poverty in the Islamic world, and when the poor and hungry complain, we'll just blame Israel and the Jews for their misery.

[JNelson6563]

27. Or America, "the great Satan"

[Kolesar]

31. It rattles my "Midwestern humility" ethic ... eom

[Scootaloo]

35. Oh look, a DU'er saying ignorant shit about the Middle East! It must be Monday

The UAE actually contributes several billion in foreign aid, primarily to other muslim nations, with Yemen and Afghanistan being the major recipients, and Pakistan and the Palestinian Territories being the next ones on the list. Dubai is also the epicenter of charity giving in the Arab world, with Non-government charities and donors raising and giving several billion more. And contrary to your assertion, the UAE doesn't rail against Israel (though granted the two do not have "official" diplomatic relations... they do have some economic and political ties despite that, however).

But don't worry. This is DU, after all, facts and reality don't matter when discussing the Middle East, Arabs, or Muslims in general.

[Yavin4]

36. So, There's no poverty whatsoever in the muslim world, esp. Yemen and Afghanistan

That's good to know. Thank you.

Donating to charity aint the same as eradicating poverty.

[Scootaloo]

40. That's exactly what I said, right?

[Yavin4]

59. All I Said Was That Alleviating Abject Poverty in the Middle East should come before this kind of

ostentatious spending. For that, you said that I was "spouting ignorant shit". Well, in order for my statement to be "ignorant shit", poverty should have been alleviated by now, right?

[Gidney N Cloyd]

62. Makes sense to me. How do you award yourself something this ostentatious when...

...when there's a single hungry, homeless, or sick person in your world?
I'm all for enjoying the good life but there's a line you cross with this kind of stuff. Sink the same money into a big public works project and slap your name on it if you need the recognition.

[Scootaloo]

63. Problem is, it's not an especially logical argument

How dare you eat a steak. Don't you know there are people in your town living off dry rice? Shame on you.

See?

My point is that the argument you presented - that "they" don't do anything for poor Muslims is factually incorrect, as was your claim that "they just blame the Jews." Neither statement is true, and both are easily disproved with even a basic grasp of facts.

Your statement was both ignorant and shit. Don't worry, this is DU, ignorant shit about Arabs is stylish, embrace it.

[Yavin4]

68. Okay. A large percentage of the world's oil reserves resides in the Middle East

along with some of the worst poverty on the planet. I never said that "they don't do anything" for poor Muslims. I said that they could use that wealth to alleviate poverty much like Norway does with its energy reserves.

Here's an example of what I am talking about:

The Government Pension Fund – Global (Norwegian: Statens pensjonsfond – Utland, SPU) is a fund into which the surplus wealth produced by Norwegian petroleum income is deposited. The fund changed name in January 2006 from its previous name, The Petroleum Fund of Norway. The fund is commonly referred to as The Oil Fund (Norwegian: Oljefondet). As of the valuation in June 2011, it was the largest pension fund in the world, although it is not actually a pension fund as it derives its financial backing from oil profits and not pension contributions. As of December 31st 2012 its total value is NOK 3.816 trillion[1] ($683.7;billion), holding one percent of global equity markets.[2] With 1.78 percent of European stocks,[2] it is said to be the largest stock owner in Europe.[3]
The purpose of the petroleum fund is to invest parts of the large surplus generated by the Norwegian petroleum sector, generated mainly from taxes of companies, but also payment for license to explore as well as the State's Direct Financial Interest and dividends from partly state-owned Statoil. Current revenue from the petroleum sector is estimated to be at its peak period and to decline over the next decades. The Petroleum Fund was established in 1990 after a decision by the country's legislature to counter the effects of the forthcoming decline in income and to smooth out the disruptive effects of highly fluctuating oil prices.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Government_Pension_Fund_of_Norway

They could do something like this or buy a big fucking yacht.

[slackmaster]

14. That could easily be a National Lampoon parody yacht

Or something like the Kenworth Pilgrimmage SUV.

[Mopar151]

49. That's not even a parody

Motorcoach interiors on the level of this yacht are pretty common in the entertainer/celebrity world - look at Newell coaches, or the several converters who use Prevost chassis.
This one's a smooth million, probably a good deal - $$$$1.8 mil new.


The "Pilgrimage" has a real life counterpart - the truck - based "Toterhome". Most buses, coaches and motorhomes don't tow big trailers well, so these have evolved, at least in part, from the cut-up school buses that racers have been repurposeing since the '50's.
$180 k & up new,
?m=1313527140

The OP is a cruise ship that's trying too hard.

[Arctic Dave]

18. So they "royal family" of AB is stealing money from their people.

Shouldn't this grotesque show of theft be dealt with like we did with Libya? Wasn't that one of the reasons we helped overthrow the government there?

The "royal family" is no better then MK and here we are oogling their new toy.

[HiPointDem]

19. +1

[Initech]

25. Egypt too. Hosni Mubarek was one of the thrives.

[yesphan]

28. Only 20 ft.

shorter that The Graf Spee.

[Kolesar]

34. Longer than the ammunition ship I served on

And I thought it was huge.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USNS_Mount_Baker_(T-AE-34)

[yesphan]

38. Wow !

250 ft. longer than the tin can my dad served on in the pacific, WWII . Prolly a bit more luxurious as well.

[lunatica]

39. With a little luck it'll spring a leak

[Rex]

41. Gee, I hope they don't hit an iceberg!

Really I do!

[backscatter712]

44. Admire it. You paid for it. Every time you gassed up your car. n/t

[Canuckistanian]

47. Betcha it won't be able to go though the Erie Canal

Nor can you ski behind it.

Hmmmph. Some boat.

[hootinholler]

67. If it goes 30 Kts then I bet a good skier could ski behind it. n/t

[Sunlei]

48. I guess Cheney and buddies :P

from "Azzam the American" adwatch a bush cheney production.

.."TITLE: "Azzam the American"

LENGTH: 30 seconds.

PRODUCER: Neil Estraveda.

AIRING: Nationally through November 2.

SCRIPT:

Bush: "I'm George W Bush, and while I'm not necessarily saying that I approve of this message, I sure as heck think that it's something you need to see and give close consideration to."

Visual: ABC news footage. Man in headdress wags finger disapprovingly at the camera while speaking in a voice reminiscent of Count Floyd.

Azzam: Greetings, infidels. I am Azzam the American, and I intend to tell you this truth......"


ref http://www.voccoquan.com/bush%20years/voodoo2.htm

[L0oniX]

51. Damn homeless people spending all their hard earned SS on that thing. n/t

[slackmaster]

52. We should take over Abu Dhabi's oil and sell it to fund Social Security.

And while we're at it, Fifty-Four Forty or Fight.

[Apophis]

53. What, did they run out of things to buy?

[RKP5637]

57. A little too big for my bathtub!

[treestar]

60. Where is the line between yacht and luxury cruise ship?

[PD Turk]

65. Damn

That thing is as big as a cruiser!

[edbermac]

66. Kind of makes people want to root for Somali pirates.

Or Caribbean ones.

[Sunlei]

73. I give it a month before some Sheiks son wrecks it or runs over a beach crowd.

A straight 2 class society that can afford anything their heart desires, just to wreck it.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="

?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[gateley]

76. I think it's pretty. And as outrageous as this extreme show of filthy lucre is,

the rich have always done it, and always will. My disgust won't change a thing, so I'm just admiring the ship for its beauty (IMO).

[cantbeserious]

77. Remind Me Again Why We Tolerate This Disparity In Wealth

eom

[mecherosegarden]

78. It does look pretty.... and very expensive. N/T

[backscatter712]

79. All of us paid for it - every time we gassed up our cars. n/t

[dembotoz]

80. if a rich guy wanted to top it i bet he could get the Carnival Triumph cheap

hot and cold running poop
and soooo green it doesn't use any fuel at all (when it is being towed)

[dipsydoodle]

81. Yes but this is more fun