01 - CONCEPT

Skillinger is a multi-purpose, four-season, self-drive explorer vessel; a platform with the capacity to satisfy the extreme pioneer as well as the fair-weather leisure boater. It is designed to marry the potency of an ocean-crossing expedition yacht with the multi-role ‘drivability’ of a day boat; and to do so while embracing the finest aesthetic elements of the automotive and architectural worlds. With its full-beam superstructure, twin hulls and removable deck pods, it can be adapted to the place, the season and the activity without delay or complication. That’s not just a step forward in recreational versatility. It’s a groundbreaking solution for those in search of something better.

“I wanted a yacht that could be tailored to the destination, the season and the activity; one that could operate all year round, in any part of the world as a day boat, a cruiser or a transatlantic explorer.

I wanted top-class safety standards and ocean-friendly handling, allied to the space and comfort of a penthouse apartment.

In essence, I wanted a do-it-all utility vessel; a Range Rover of the seas. It was an ambition the market couldn’t satisfy, so after 30 years of searching, I decided to create the solution."

ANDY WHITE
FOUNDER + FIRST SKILLINGER OWNER

“We set out to design a yacht that could transform from a cruiser to an explorer overnight. We wanted to blend interior and exterior spaces, while fusing hard-core practicality with pioneering style.

In the end, Skillinger’s combination of external space, expansive accommodation and deck pod flexibility has created a living experience unmatched at this length.

It will satisfy the most discerning owner in the most remote parts of the world while being equally at home as a relaxed summer day boat. This radical multi-function design is the flag-bearer for a new way of yachting."

RUPERT MANN
YACHT DESIGNER

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    02 - ANDY WHITE

    Having been involved in the design and construction of practical, high-speed marine vessels since the 1970s, Andy White knows exactly what effective and versatile sea boats are all about.

    In 2010, he reinvigorated the historic boatbuilding industry of his hometown, Brightlingsea, through the establishment of CWind and Ctruk Boats. While the region’s past was built on the production of fishing smacks, this was a starkly modern company dedicated to the construction and operation of vessels to help build offshore wind farms They quickly developed a sterling reputation in the commercial testing grounds of the North Sea and  it became plain that Andy’s unique experience would prove radically effective if properly applied to a new and more effective form of recreational craft.

    And so with a set of industry-defining leisure boat technologies in mind, Andy approached Rupert Rainsford Mann to help mould these pioneering systems into a refined and sophisticated package for a yachting experience unlike any other.

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    03 - RUPERT MANN

    Rupert Rainsford Mann created the London-based RMD design studio in 2009 as an all-encompassing service provider for the global superyacht industry. However, with a celebrated portfolio in interior architecture, RMD’s capacity to consolidate its groundbreaking yacht designs with a fresh approach to the interplay between inside and outside spaces quickly won widespread renown. Skillinger was therefore the perfect opportunity for RMD to unleash the full weight of its creative and technical expertise.

    Rupert’s brief was challenging. Skillinger was to be more capable, more versatile and more dynamic than any other craft of its length. It was to be a compact and flexible explorer vessel for all seasons; a “4x4 for the water”, combining the rugged practicality of an ocean-crossing expedition yacht with the kind of luxury and elegance that would grace the globe’s most exalted destinations.

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04 - SKILLINGER'S HERITAGE

The name ‘Skillinger’ derives from the oyster-dredging smacks that operated out of Brightlingsea from the 1800s through to the start of the Second World War. 

Working the ‘Skillin’ fishing grounds off the Dutch port of Terschelling was a grueling business. Northeast gales generated a treacherous lee shore and any gear failure would result in the loss of both vessel and crew.

Today, more than 100 years after her launch, “Harriet Blanche” a smaller sister to the larger Skillnger smacks is still sailing out of Brightlingsea.

Skillinger is a respectful nod toward that bold maritime history - a recreational craft, certainly, but one underpinned by the commercial expediency and seafaring expertise that has helped define the region’s unique nautical heritage.