Maybe there’s some synergy in the latest yacht from Ares being named the Spitfire. After all, the Turkish, family-owned shipyard has been building both military and commercial vessels since 2006, including for the Turkish Navy, but also the navies of Germany and several countries across the Middle East.
More recently, its Ulaq offshoot has become a world leader in the development and building of remote, unmanned and self-guiding, so-called ‘kamikaze’ vessels. These are ‘the future’ of the military at sea, says Ares’ yacht projects director Piraye Orhun, ‘but I can’t talk too much about that’.
Spitfire, from Ares Yachts
Nonetheless, this has helped make Ares one of Turkey’s fastest-growing companies, across any sector. But the Spitfire – with the first of its spec being built and due for completion next year – takes that association further: its agile, fast displacement composite hull form is based on that of the Ares’ 150 Bold military coastal patrol vessel, making it possibly the first crossover of its kind. ‘Certainly, building a superyacht on a military platform is a rare thing and an exciting idea,’ Orhun offers.
The beach club, Spitfire
The Spitfire comes with a 22-knot top speed and extendable 2,200 nautical mile range. ‘The hull efficiency and other standards required of military vessels can be very tough, as well as the necessary speed and quality benchmarks [of government contracts],’ says Orhun (Ares must hold something of a record in having once delivered a military vessel from scratch in 42 days). ‘In fact, military standards typically far exceed those expected of superyachts. There’s a pedigree there, a proven performance that translates to a superyacht.’
'The Bunker' aboard Spitfire
But Ares has taken the idea further – if most superyachts lean into something like a contemporary luxe style, the 50.55m Spitfire, with naval architecture by the British firm Lateral, plays subtly on its association with the famed Second World War fighter, which was based on a record-setting seaplane and built by a subsidiary of Vickers-Armstrong, itself a shipbuilder, among other things.
The owner's cabin, or 'Boss Quarters'
The Spitfire yacht has a core industrial aesthetic, devised by the esteemed British yacht design agency Bannenberg & Rowell. The fighter’s employment of innovative sunken rivets to further streamline its aerodynamics, for example, is echoed, inside and out, in its waterborne namesake’s smooth surfaces, punched metal and metallic sheen; the yacht has a notably low profile; there's extensive use of military grey, together with bands of dark glass.
Another view of the 'Bunker' on the main deck
Eschewing yachting convention – and having some fun – the Spitfire’s rooms come pre-named in military style too: the bridge is ‘the Pilot House’, the main deck salon is ‘the Bunker’, while the dining salon is the ‘D-Fac’ (the military abbreviation for ‘Dining Facility’). The interiors are all built in-house by Ares.
D-Fac, or the dining area
‘The whole idea of [a Spitfire aircraft] is very British,’ laughs Orhun. ‘Is it strange to be inspired by that aircraft? I don't think so. [The aircraft symbolised] a victory in war that was important for all countries. Besides, much of a yacht's appeal now lies in the stories behind it, and the Spitfire [aircraft] has a fantastic story. The general feedback on the design and the story behind [the yacht] have been positive too’.
Another view of the main cabin
As well-appointed as most superyachts, the Spitfire even comes with an outdoor cinema: ideal, perhaps, for a screening of The First Of The Few or Reach For The Sky.
Spitfire, from Ares Yachts