The World premiere for the new Azimut 103S took place at the XV International Dubai Boat Show in March. The Middle East is one of Azimut’s prime markets and ART Marine of Dubai, the winner of the Best Overseas Dealer at the last Azimut Dealers’ Meeting, acted as host for the launch in Dubai.
This exciting new yacht was the creative concept of Stefano Righini and the Azimut Design Team, who have combined their talents to design a prestigious sports yacht where the focus would be on freedom:
- Freedom to enjoy the lounge and cockpit as a single open space by simply opening the large connecting doors. The luxury and quality of the interiors is continued on the outside and the feeling of interior freedom is high-lighted by the generous natural light flowing through the large side windows.
- Freedom for the owner and guests to fully enjoy the intimacy of the areas designed for them, with the crew areas having fully independent access thanks to careful design. This complete separation has been achieved by:
- External access to the crew’s quarters from the side deck on the port side.
- Crew access to the upper deck via a separate stairway from the cockpit. This allows the crew an external route for pilothouse access so that navigation can continue without interfering with the relaxing life of the owner and guests on board.
- Two galleys, one of them easily accessible for use by the crew located on the lower deck and the other located on an intermediate deck between the main and lower decks. This unique concept of an upper galley is designed primarily for the owner’s use and is an area where the owner can enjoy his own personal privacy thanks to a separate entrance away from the crew’s quarters.
- Freedom to navigate on a yacht that combines the stunning beauty of the latest styling with the reliability and performance created from the best innovation and technological research. The Azimut 103S was designed to conform to the International Regulations for the classification of high speed craft (HSC Code) that sets the standards for materials and construction required for the power of the engines. Propulsion is provided by two 2434 HP MTU engines, each one coupled to a Rolls Royce KaMeWa water jet, a combination that guarantees smooth, sophisticated performance and maximum reliability.
The creative style of the interiors is the work of Carlo Galeazzi, who excels in the use of luxury materials to create an exclusive style. For the exterior Azimut’s unique Bordeaux Red was chosen as the colour of the hull of the 103S giving this model a unique and exciting personality.
The 103S has all the distinctive aspects that have been developed for the other models in the Azimut’s Open range. Special efforts have been made in the use of the latest yacht technology and design features to combine the technical complexity of a large high-speed yacht with the creation of unique guest areas that would provide the owner with complete intimacy.
It was in 2003 that Azimut Yachts presented the first model in its Open range. The Azimut 68S marked a significant change in the world of luxury sports yachting with its combination of a sexy external appearance and high levels of on board comfort. Pioneers in excellence, Azimut has now set important new standards in the design of Open boats with its 103S. Here the application of new structural criteria and the use of the latest high technology have been combined to simplify life on board and raise comfort and style to new levels.
The Exterior
As befits a large Open sports yacht the Azimut 103S excels thanks to its vast external leisure areas, which are seen as one of the strong points of this new design. Azimut Yacht’s latest creation offers more than 120m2 of usable external space, divided between the stern platform, the cockpit, the relaxing area at the bow and the new upper deck space.
For the first time ever on an Open model, Azimut Yachts has included an upper deck accessible through a cockpit stairway. At the forward end of this upper deck are the pilothouse and a new design of navigation control centre that grants the owner and his guests the freedom to enjoy vast internal and external spaces.
At the bow there is a large sunbathing area that includes a C-shaped sofa and two small sliding tables. This area is wide and squared off so that the space in the VIP cabin below can be extended.
The large windows that represent one of the main features of the S range are particularly important on this model since they provide a remarkable cascade of light in both the lounge and the staterooms. Besides the now-famous square hull windows developed by Azimut there are butterfly shaped windows at the bow, and two new similar shaped scenic windows that provide generous natural light in the two twin-bed guest cabins.
For the first time in the yachting world, the cockpit is provided with innovative and luxurious furnishing ideas that match the style of the interior décor. This has been made possible by an extensive search for exclusive materials that are resistant to weathering.
The garage below is claimed to be the largest in its category and is capable of housing a 5.8m tender plus two 2.9m jet skis. Despite the huge size of the tender garage it does not impose on the cockpit area in any way even when the garage door is open, another example of the way that the working areas and the relaxing areas of this fine yacht have been kept separated.
Upper deck
The Upper Deck is one of the strong points of this new Azimut 103S design. This is a unique area for a large Open yacht and this deck not only offers an additional sunbathing area for the owner and his guests but also a separate control centre for the for the crew that does not interfere with the privacy of the social life on board.
Private access from the cockpit leads to this 35m2 deck that is equipped with a sitting area with C-shaped sofa and two comfortable sun loungers.
Main deck
The glass access door to the lounge is made up of three sliding panels that completely disappear behind the stairway leading to the upper bridge. Once again Azimut Yachts makes its mark on the world of yacht design with this state of the art concept. When the sliding door is fully open the lounge and cockpit combine with matching decors to create one huge social area for the owner and guests.
At the entrance to the lounge, there is a bar to the right while comfortable Sofas can be found to the left. The scenic windows on the deckhouse sides enhances the salon light with the support structures holding the glass reduced to a minimum in order to allow as much natural light as possible to filter through. The glass makes up 80% of the side of the deckhouse.
As well as the windscreen and side windows, the lounge is illuminated by glass panels in the unique hard top Two of the glass panels in the hard top can be opened to create a huge 14m2 window to the sky. The glass in the deckhouse has been designed to reduce internal overheating to a minimum with the side windows having a mirrored finish and the hardtop panels and the windscreen formed with layers of tinted glass.
The owner’s personal galley has been conceived on an intermediate level located between the main deck and lower deck allowing the owner maximum privacy to use this area thanks to its private access which is completely separate from the crew’s quarters. The design of this galley, created “ad hoc” by use of the exclusive Boffi brand on the Azimut 103S, confirms the high level of attention paid by Azimut Yachts to the quality of the fittings and furnishings.
Lower deck
The original concept for the lower deck developed by Stefano Righini offers four staterooms.
The owner’s full width stateroom is located at the centre of the yacht for maximum comfort and offers more space than any other yacht in this category. The bed is at the centre facing the bow whilst at the sides of the hull, adjacent to the large square windows, are a desk on the starboard side and a small lounge on the port side, both overlooking the sea.
The VIP stateroom is in the bow with the bed located at an angle of 45°.
The two identical twin-bed guest staterooms, each with its en-suite bathroom, can be accessed from the same corridor that leads forward to the VIP stateroom.
The lighting, both the natural and the artificial light, act as important aspects of the interior design. The large windows make the internal space an area to be enjoyed even during the day, whilst at night; the lighting is diffused through back-lit panels with controls for mood lighting.
The crew quarters are accessed by a port side walkway and include two cabins and two bathrooms. The crew galley and dining area are also located here.
Unparalleled technology and performance
This new flagship in Azimut Yacht’s Open S range offers the highest levels of technology both in its construction and in its equipment. These are the most up-to-date available on the market today and have been specifically developed for high performance.
The 103 S was designed in line with RINA standards for high-speed craft (Rules for the Classification of High-Speed Craft). The careful choice of materials and the use of multi-axial fibres and sandwich construction for the mouldings have ensured a very strong, lightweight structure that is capable of coping with the stresses of high performance.
The inner linings are made up from honeycomb floating panels that help to absorb noise and vibration and noise is further reduced by the use of underwater exhausts.
The two 2434 HP MTU diesels from the 2000 range that power the Rolls Royce KaMeWa water jets guarantee top performance and maximum reliability with this performance yacht capable of reaching speeds of 34 knots.
Automatic dynamic interceptors fitted to the transom are used to adjust the longitudinal trim for optimum performance and can form part of an automatic ride control system that will maximise onboard comfort at speed.
Provisional Technical Data
Length overall 30.91 m 101’5”
Beam (at main section) 7.10 m 19’1”
Draft 1.34 m 4’ 5”
Displacement (at full load) 105 t
Fuel 12.350 l 3.262 US gals
Water 2.500 l 661 US gals
Engines 2 x 2434 mHP (1790 kW) V16 2000 M93
Maximum Speed 34 kn
Cruising Speed 30 kn
Cabins 4 + crew
Berths 8 + crew
Heads 4 + crew
Construction material GRP
Keel V- shape with deadrise angle of 18.8° aft
Styling & Concept Stefano Righini
Interior Design Carlo Galeazzi
Builder Azimut Yachts – Viareggio
March 2007