The 9th of August is a historic date for the Italian shipbuilding industry, marking 30 years of a record that still stands undefeated, set by the ship Destriero. Since 1992 the "Blue Riband" for the Atlantic crossing has belonged to all those who participated in the design and construction of the ship and the realisation of the challenge.
On 6 August 1992, Destriero, a fantastic example of Italian naval technology, left behind the Ambrose Light in New York, the skyscrapers of Manhattan and the Verrazzano bridge to embark on the record-breaking attempt.
At dawn on 9 August 1992, at 6.14 a.m. and 50 seconds, staff manning the Bishop Rock lighthouse in the Scilly isles off England, still shrouded in fog, were surprised to hear the voice of Cesare Fiorio over the radio: “Good Morning, this is the commander of the ship Destriero, we left from New York, please register the date and time of our passage." "Good morning Destriero, we were not expecting you so soon..." was the operator’s reply.
Destriero, flying the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda burgee, had covered 3,106 miles in 58 hours, 34 minutes and 50 seconds, at an average speed of 53.09 knots, or 98.323 km/h, taking 21 hours less than the English catamaran Hoverspeed, holder of the previous record.
Waiting for the crew on their arrival was H.H. the Aga Khan, President of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and the main supporter of the project. In addition to the Blue Riband, Destriero was also awarded the New York Yacht Club's Columbus Atlantic Trophy and the Virgin Atlantic Challenge Trophy, created by Richard Branson.
Destriero, flying the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda burgee, had covered 3,106 miles in 58 hours, 34 minutes and 50 seconds, at an average speed of 53.09 knots, or 98.323 km/h, taking 21 hours less than the English catamaran Hoverspeed, holder of the previous record.
Waiting for the crew on their arrival was H.H. the Aga Khan, President of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and the main supporter of the project. In addition to the Blue Riband, Destriero was also awarded the New York Yacht Club's Columbus Atlantic Trophy and the Virgin Atlantic Challenge Trophy, created by Richard Branson.
The Destriero Challenge was born from H.H. the Aga Khan's passion for new naval technologies He promoted the project with the support of the leading representatives of the Italian industrial sector of the time: Giovanni Agnelli (Fiat), Franco Nobili (IRI), Umberto Nordio (Alitalia) and Arrigo Gattai (CONI) and prestigious sponsors such as Agip, General Electric, MTU and KaMeWa.
The name, Destriero, in the Middle Ages indicated the most daring and courageous of steeds, just as the idea of building the fastest ship of all time was a daring and courageous one in 1990. The design was entrusted to Donald Blount, who called on the support of Pininfarina, and was built in record time by Fincantieri at the Muggiano shipyard.
Thanks to all the innovations, design and technologies developed, the Destriero project marked a decisive step forward in the technological progress of shipbuilding.
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The crew that took part in the enterprise was composed of: Cesare Fiorio - captain and head of the Destriero Challenge project, Odoardo Mancini - captain, Aldo Benedetti - second in command, Sergio Simeone - first officer, Franco De Mei - telecommunications operator, Giuseppe Carbonaro - machine director, Mario Gando and Nello Andreoli - machinists, Massimo Robino - electrician, Silvano Federici and Cesare Quondamatteo - engine technicians, Davide Maccario - automation technician, Giacomo Petriccione - propulsion technician, Michael Hurrle - turbine technician.
The goal was to claim the Atlantic crossing speed record, and it was achieved. For 30 years now, Destriero has been the fastest ship in the world.
Franco Liistro,
Destriero Challenge press office