Fleming flagship
In December of 2020, Fleming Yachts announced the beginning of a new flagship - the Fleming 85 - to a resounding response from Fleming owners and to the yachting media, with seven already ordered.
Photography by © Salty Dingo
31 July 2023
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The Fleming F85 was designed to be the finest semi-displacement raised pilothouse cruising yacht in the world with ocean-crossing range. Since the initial renderings were first introduced, there have been seven Fleming 85s ordered, the first three of which are either already out cruising or getting ready to be.
“We have had tremendous success with the launch of the Fleming 85,” said Duncan Cowie of the Fleming shipyard.
“The feedback we have received from the owners who are out cruising on their boat has all been very positive and we look forward to staying in touch with them throughout their travels. As you know, Fleming rarely introduces a new model, however we are constantly examining and improving each yacht we build through extensive owner feedback.”
Fleming 85 hull #001 is cruising the east coast of the US with the new owners and hull #002 is underway in the Mediterranean. Hull #003 is being commissioned at the Burr Yacht Sales facility in Maryland, while hull #004 is in the final testing phase and floating in a purpose-built tank at the shipyard.
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Because of the demand for the F85, Fleming have invested in a new production facility strictly dedicated to the new model. It is located in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, close to the harbour.
“We have personally invested in this new facility,” said Adi Shard of the Fleming shipyard. “This gives us a level of control over how the facility is run, which gives us a great advantage when it comes to quality control.”
“We always wanted to build THE ultimate cruising yacht which would be literally the finest semi-displacement raised pilothouse cruising yacht in the world,” said Adi Shard.
“With 10 percent reserves, the F85 has a range of 3,700 nautical miles at 8.5 knots, 2,700 nautical miles at 10 knots, and has a 25-knot cruising speed. We have more than achieved our promise of making the F85 the most fuel efficient semi-displacement hull available.”
“Our existing customers wanted to be able to travel farther and explore far flung places, while being completely self-sufficient,” continued Duncan.
“We didn’t want to have a long list of options that owners had to choose in order to make the F85 capable of long-distance cruising. Every piece of major equipment is standard on the F85, including the lithium-ion house battery bank which is 1,400 amp hours capacity, and 12kW of inverter power – all standard.”
The Fleming 85 will be the first Fleming model offered in both open and enclosed flybridge versions.
“Hull #003 is the first enclosed bridge design which has opened up a newer market for us,” said Adi. “We hope to have an F85 available for display at one of the upcoming Boat Shows, but we are not going to rush the commissioning of the boat and the owner training.”
So, for now, the boat show premiere of the F85 is still undetermined. Adi Shard will be present at FLIBS to discuss any aspects of the Fleming 85, or other models, with the public.
Fleming Yachts Australia will attend the 2023 Sydney International Boat Show, 3 to 6 August at Darling Harbour, exhibiting the Fleming 55, “My Lady”.
Enquiries via info@flemingyachts.com.au
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