A warship yard delivers Aisha, a 40.8m custom yacht for family life

A naval builder takes a private commission

Anadolu Shipyard sits on the water near Istanbul and has spent most of its life building for navies and the state. Aisha is a different kind of job: a 40.8-metre full-custom motoryacht in aluminium, launched in March 2026 and delivered to her owner on 24 July. Red Yacht Design, which keeps offices in London and Istanbul, drew both the exterior and the interior; Notilus Engineering handled the naval architecture, and Eureka Yachts ran the project.

For an owner the pedigree is the point. A yard that works to naval tolerances brings a build culture most 40-metre production yards do not, and it gives the market a fresh full-custom option in a size class where the waiting lists at the established European yards run for years.

The brief was room, not pace

The client asked for generous family living without giving up seakeeping, and the layout answers it. A full-beam master sits forward on the main deck with its own office and two bathrooms, the main saloon runs to about 60 square metres, and the sundeck opens out to roughly 120 square metres for a yacht of this length.

Aluminium keeps the hull light, which matters on a boat built around volume rather than range. The accommodation is scaled for extended family stays rather than a full charter roster, so the owner gets private space instead of a packed guest count.

Modest range, Mediterranean job

Twin MAN diesels push Aisha to a top speed of about 19 knots and an economical cruise near 15 knots. At that cruise the yard puts her range at 1,500 nautical miles, enough for a Mediterranean season and island runs rather than ocean crossings.

That is a deliberate trade. The owner bought a comfortable, well-built family yacht for coastal and Med cruising, not an explorer, and priced the range accordingly. For a buyer weighing a new 40-metre custom build, Aisha shows Anadolu can deliver one in this class.