Galactica Star
| LOA | 65 m |
|---|---|
| Delivered | 2013 |
| Naval architecture | Van Oossanen FDHF, first full application |
| Exterior | Omega Architects |
| Interior | Bannenberg and Rowell |
| Accommodation | 12 guests, 13 crew |
| Top speed | 30 knots on trials |
| Award | World Superyacht Award 2014 |
The yacht that opened a decade
When Heesen delivered Galactica Star in May 2013, it did more than launch a 65 metre flagship. Known in build as Project Omnia, she was the first full application of the Fast Displacement Hull Form developed with Van Oossanen. The hull promised the seakeeping of a displacement boat with the pace of something far racier, and the sea trials made good on it. She went on to win at the World Superyacht Awards in 2014. That recognition confirmed what the sea trials had already shown.
For Heesen the boat was a proof of concept that reshaped the entire range. Almost every yacht the yard has drawn since traces its efficiency back to this hull. For her owner she was a genuinely fast 65 metre with the manners of a much calmer boat. A decade on, she is still a reference point in any conversation about fast superyachts. Her influence on the modern Heesen range is hard to overstate.
Frank Laupman's fast lines
Frank Laupman of Omega Architects drew an exterior that looks quick standing still. The profile is long and lean, with a plumb bow and taut superstructure that suit the hull beneath. Over 267 square metres of deck spread across her three upper levels, so guests are never short of space in the sun or the shade. The styling has aged with unusual grace for a boat of its era. Frank Laupman gave her proportions that still look current today.
The clever touches are structural as much as cosmetic. A foredeck helipad doubles as a sun terrace, set over gull-wing doors that open to reveal a full-beam tender garage. Aft, a duplex beach club unfolds across the main and lower decks to bring guests down to the waterline. These were bold moves in 2013 and they still impress on board today. The result is a yacht that brings guests close to the water at every opportunity.
The first Heesen to carry the Fast Displacement hull, and still a benchmark.
Bannenberg and Rowell's free hand
Inside, Bannenberg and Rowell were given room to invent. Creative director Simon Rowell described a taut, disciplined design language that flows from space to space without a fixed theme. The result feels coherent and current, a single idea carried through the whole boat. It reads as calm, considered confidence. The materials feel restrained and expensive throughout. Guests sense the quality before they can name it.
The layout hosts 12 guests, with a full-beam owner's stateroom, an upper-deck VIP and four further double suites. A crew of 13 keeps the service seamless across her decks. Volumes are generous and the flow between social spaces is easy. This is an interior built for entertaining on a serious scale. Long stays aboard feel effortless thanks to the easy flow between spaces.
Thirty knots, honestly earned
The engineering headline is simple. Galactica Star reached 30 knots on trials against a contracted 27, and she does it while burning around 30 per cent less fuel than a conventional round-bilged hull of her size. That combination was close to unheard of at 65 metres in 2013. The Fast Displacement Hull Form was the reason, and this boat was its first full expression. That first success reshaped every Heesen that followed. The engineering has proved itself over a decade of service.
What that means for an owner is reach and pace without a punitive fuel bill. She can chase good weather or a dinner reservation at speed, then settle into an efficient passage the next morning. The efficiency also extends her range at cruising speeds. Few boats have matched the blend of performance and economy she introduced. That balance is what made her such a persuasive flagship in her day.
The owner it suits
Galactica Star suits the owner who wants a piece of yachting history with the performance to back the story. She is a fast, striking 65 metre with the deck space and beach club to entertain a full complement of guests. Her provenance as the first FDHF Heesen adds a layer few rivals can claim. For a buyer who values both speed and pedigree, she is a rare object. Her place in the yard's history is secure.
She also rewards an owner who cruises actively and dislikes waiting. The pace lets her cover ground that slower flagships treat as a delivery. The award-winning design and duplex beach club keep life on board memorable at anchor. She still turns heads in any harbour she visits. She is a yacht for an owner who likes to arrive quickly and in style.
Двигатели и системы
| Main engines | Twin MTU 20V 4000 M93L diesels, 4,300 kW each at 2,100 rpm (Romeo United Yachts, Yachts International) |
|---|---|
| Generators | Two Kohler Kilo-Pak sets, 175 kW each (Romeo United Yachts) |
| Stabilizers | Five Seakeeper M21000 gyro-stabilizers - an unusually high count, fitted to hold the fast-displacement hull steady at both speed and at anchor (Romeo United Yachts) |
| Fuel tankage | 90,000 litres / 23,770 US gallons (Romeo United Yachts) |
| Range and speed | Contracted for 27 knots, reached 30 knots on trials; range about 4,200 nm at 14 knots (Romeo United Yachts, Yachts International, the yard's own material) |
| Hull form | Van Oossanen Fast Displacement Hull Form, the first full application on an aluminium Heesen - the naval-architecture idea the boat exists to prove (Heesen, Offshore Energy) |
| Not publicly known | Bow and stern thruster make and output, watermaker capacity, and black/grey water tankage were not published in any source checked |
Что сообщают владельцы и экипажи
High-profile charter guests
Beyonce and Jay-Z chartered the yacht in the Mediterranean in 2016 to mark the singer's 32nd birthday, one of the few instances of independent, named guest use reported for this yacht.
Boss Hunting, reporting contemporary celebrity-press coverageOriginal ownership and seizure
The yacht was linked in US and Nigerian investigations to Kola Aluko and the wider Diezani Alison-Madueke corruption case before its 2017 seizure and 2019 court-ordered sale.
Wikipedia, SuperYacht Times and BOAT International, drawing on US Department of Justice and contemporary press reporting
Сильные стороны и что учесть
Сильные стороны
- A genuine engineering landmark, not just a fast boatThe first full-scale application of Van Oossanen's Fast Displacement Hull Form on an aluminium Heesen, reaching 30 knots against a contracted 27 while burning roughly 30 per cent less fuel than a conventional round-bilge hull her size - a result the yard has built its modern range around (Heesen, Offshore Energy).
- Award-recognised design that has aged wellWon at the World Superyacht Awards in 2014, and the Omega Architects exterior and Bannenberg and Rowell interior are still cited as reference points a decade later.
На что обратить внимание
- Her ownership history is a matter of public record, not marketingSeized in 2017 under the US Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative over links to a Nigerian oil-corruption case involving former petroleum minister Diezani Alison-Madueke, then sold via a US court-ordered sealed-bid auction in 2019 and renamed Illusion (Wikipedia, SuperYacht Times, BOAT International). A prospective charter guest or student of the boat should know this is part of her record, not a rumour.
- No independent sea trial data beyond the yard's own figuresThe 30-knot trial result and the fuel-saving claim both trace back to Heesen and its naval architect; no third-party publication was found independently verifying the fuel-consumption comparison against a conventional hull.
Практическая информация
| Original build price | Reported as EUR 65 million at her 2013 launch (Wikipedia, citing contemporary press) |
|---|---|
| 2019 auction sale | Sold via a US court-ordered judicial sealed-bid auction after seizure, reportedly for around USD 42 million against reserve, bought through Burgess representing an undisclosed buyer (Yacht Harbour, BOAT International, SuperYacht Times) |
| Charter rate (as ILLUSION) | Reported around USD 900,000 a week by YachtCharterFleet, though she was not a full-time commercial charter yacht in her original ownership - 'you had to know the owner to step aboard' per contemporary reporting |
| 2019 refit | Refitted after the ownership change, per YachtWorld's research write-up, before returning to service under the new name |
| Not publicly known | The identity of the buyer at the 2019 auction is not public - the vessel is held through the shell company Paxford Ltd and operated by Burgess Yachts (Wikipedia) |
Для кого: The owner who wants a landmark fast 65 metre with award-winning design, a duplex beach club and true 30 knot pace.