There seems to be no stopping the development of foiling sailing boats. Swiss Alinghi sailors Nils Frei and Yves Detrey have now presented a new type of "flying machine" that is set to revolutionise conventional hydrofoil systems once again. At the centre of the avant-garde technology is a pivoting T-shaped hydrofoil, a so-called canting T-foil. That sounds just as exciting as it is.
The first tests on Lake Geneva have been very promising. The Swiss Nils Frei, co-initiator of the Syra-18 project, reports: "Everything is working as planned. We were able to get the boat foiling very easily on the very first stroke and have already managed well over 25 knots of speed. But that's just the beginning." Now that the functionality has been proven, the innovative Frei/Detrey duo will now focus on fine-tuning and making improvements and adjustments to the details.
The Syra-18-Foiler "flies" on a central T-foil, just like the flyweights of the booming Moth class, for example. The only difference is that the wing of the Syra can be swivelled out to the side by up to 45 degrees, like a modern tilting keel. In this way, the Swiss want to direct a lift component from the foil to windward and thus counteract lateral drift in the wind. The Moth sailors are basically pursuing the same goal by pulling their boats strongly to windward at the cross. As the centre of buoyancy also shifts as the wing swings out, the foil generates additional righting moment downwind. A triple advantage for the Syra system: more pressure, more speed and less course offset.
The Syra-18-Foiler also has a completely new hull shape. At the front, the device is built like an ultra-flat monohull; towards the rear, however, the underside of the hull is extremely concave. This leaves two partial hulls aft, like a catamaran. This allows two rudders to be fitted at the rear, which, also equipped with movable wings, act as so-called elevators. These can be adjusted so that they work in opposite directions. This means that the upwind elevator pulls downwards, while the downwind elevator pushes upwards. This increases flight stability and further increases the righting moment.
But the hull shape offers even more advantages. Unlike a moth, the Syra foiler can be launched like a normal dinghy and floats upright even when not underway. The central T-foil and the rudders can be raised for launching and retrieving.
The Syra-18-Foiler is sailed by two people with a harness. The outriggers for this can be easily removed, which saves space in the dinghy park and also makes it easy to transport on a trailer. The components of the prototype, which weighs just 135 kilograms, were built entirely from carbon fibre by various suppliers. Now Nils Frei and Yves Detrey are looking for a manufacturer who can produce the Syra-18-Foiler completely in series. Initial negotiations are apparently already underway. Once the test phase has been completed, production should start soon. However, there is no initial price estimate as yet.
Michael Good
Editor Test & Technology
