Dear readers,

with their Start of the RORC Transatlantic Race has "Raven" foiling has once again moved centre stage. And although "Palm Beach XI" without the retrofitted C-Foils participated in the Sydney Hobart Race, the 100-footer away from the SailGP, Vendèe Globe and America's Cup also raised the question: "To foil or not to foil?" In the case of "Raven", her racing debut was a minor sensation. The 34-metre-long carbon construction with the T-foils that can be lowered sideways had been "flying" largely under the radar since leaving the Finnish Baltic halls in 2023. After two Atlantic crossings, 30-knot speed runs and 18,000 nautical miles in her wake, the owner decided to sign up for the offshore classic.

Some of you were probably wondering: Yes, when will "Raven" finally take off? Not at all, it's supposed to. The Botin design is geared towards semi-foiling, also known as skimming. As soon as the leeward T-foil carries around 60 per cent of the displacement and lifts the Baltic 111 onto the chine, it floats across the sea more like a catamaran. It's certainly nimble: in the RORC Transatlantic Race, it recently sailed towards the Caribbean at 24 knots and with a 550-nautical-mile etmal. The advantage of the "clipped wings": due to the proximity to the water's surface, there is no risk of touchdowns that can be gruelling for man and material, as is the case with the intermittently flying Imocas.

These 60-footers sometimes convey a rather chaotic, even dangerous image of foiling. It's as if they can't be tamed with the additional appendages. But if they were let off the line and allowed to hover constantly, it would be more comfortable, is the realisation. Guillaume Verdier safe. Breton is in favour of the seemingly small retrofitting of T-foils at the ends of the control surfaces in order to regulate the flight altitude and keep it constantly high.

Verdier moves beyond class rules with the Hypersail project. Ferrari and Giovanni Soldini grant carte blanche, anything goes. With the 100-foot-long carbon rocket, the designer is realising his dream of a monohull foiler that sails around the world and is even giving wings to the Canting Keel. "Hypersail" is expected to be afloat before the end of this year and subsequently complete record-breaking trips without "pit stops". Guillaume Verdier is also aiming for 100 per cent flight operation, as YACHT author Tim Kröger calls it, for the recently launched 100-foot Tri "Gitana 18" thanks to six fuselage attachments.

The fact that a new development is not necessarily required is proven by the "Palm Beach XI". The 20-year-old offshore racer was fitted with retractable C-foils as an additional source of buoyancy to the canting keel. This will not turn the ex-"Wild Oats XI" into a full-foiler in the next Sydney Hobart Race. When the fuselage drag is close to zero in completely detached flight mode and own wind is generated, the load on the rig and fuselage structure increases immensely and aerodynamic properties become more important. This is accompanied by narrower apparent wind angles, which result in new sails and masts. In addition, automatically maintaining the flight altitude of large-format aircraft requires extensive sensor technology in conjunction with a flight control system.

One aspect of foiling that I like is that it brings water sports enthusiasts together. Windsurfing and kitesurfing merge in wing foiling, but there are also overlaps for the surfing and sailing worlds. The wing material consisting of a foil board and kite-like wing is easy to stow on board and scores points over kitesurfing with its uncomplicated launch procedure without the need for lines. More and more cruising and performance sailors or professionals from the maxi circus are "winging" as a balance, training or for fun.

The industries are also moving closer together commercially. The French kitesurfing and wingfoil brand F-One has been working with the designers at VPLP since summer 2025. They create CFD simulations for F-One foils and receive material for their employees in return. Similar synergies arise within the North Technology Group (NTG), which includes North Sails, Southern Spars and North Actionsports, active in kitesurfing and wingsurfing. Core Watersports offers the same range of services. The company, which was founded on the Baltic island of Fehmarn, is now part of the same group as Elan Yachts and Elan Skis. If the Slovenians go after the SixtyFivea Verdier design, is building its first foil yacht?

Are you already foiling or are you still into full-contact sailing? If you can, you should give it a try, whether on a board, dinghy or yacht. The feeling is unique, especially at the lower limits - when the wind doesn't cause hulls anchored in the water to slip. You can experience speed that doesn't want to match the ripples on the surface of the water. That's what happened to me on "FlyingNikka"when the 60-foot mono sprinted off at 23 knots in about eleven knots of true wind.

However, on foils, you run the risk of being distanced from the wet element and the energy of the waves. Well, depending on the size of the base and the steepness of the waves, you may experience immediate acceleration when riding on wings, but the horizontal direction of movement can be like riding a tram in the long run. For me, it is just as unique to start sliding without actually taking off; when it first feels like pushing, briefly wobbly and then also like floating.

Everyone should be able to decide for themselves whether they want to "push gliders" or "fly gliders". Perhaps a group led by Frank Schönfeldt will succeed in opening up the sport to the general public with the foil conger project Regnoc. Fly, Regnoc, fly! Yes, but when will the everyman and woman foiler finally take off?

Sören Gehlhaus

YACHT editor

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