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Echo Yachts & MMYD announce new fully customizable SP30 catamaran motor yacht design for FLIBS 2020

Echo Yachts & MMYD announce new fully customizable SP30 catamaran motor yacht design for FLIBS 2020 Australian custom superyacht builder Echo Yachts are pleased to announce the addition of a…

Project Echo: HSV Humanitarian Support Vessel

Project Echo: ‘HSV’ Humanitarian Support Vessel Design release by Echo Yachts and Bannenberg & Rowell Design Australia’s large custom Superyacht and Yacht Support Vessel builder Echo Yachts are pleased to…

84m Trimaran White Rabbit launched in Henderson, Western Australia

Echo Yachts 84m trimaran White Rabbit launched in Henderson, Western Australia Australian custom Superyacht builder Echo Yachts are proud to announce the successful launch of their 84m superyacht newbuild project…

84m Trimaran White Rabbit Revealed

Echo Yachts 84m trimaran White Rabbit revealed Australian custom Superyacht builder Echo Yachts have proudly revealed their 84m superyacht newbuild project ‘White Rabbit’ during an exclusive VIP event at their…

Echo Marine Group upgrades to ISO9001:2015

Echo Marine Group upgrades to ISO9001:2015 The team at Echo Marine Group is proud to announce the certification upgrade of our Quality Management System to the ISO 9001:2015 requirements. Our…

Project Echo – Adventure Support Yacht

Project Echo – Adventure Support Yacht Australian custom Superyacht builder Echo Yachts are excited to unveil their new Adventure Support Yacht aptly named ‘Project Echo‘ designed in collaboration with renowned…

‘M/Y Charley’ 46m Catamaran on display at Singapore yacht show

‘M/Y Charley’ 46m Catamaran on display at Singapore yacht show ECHO YACHTS 46m M/Y CHARLEY FEATURING AT THE SINGAPORE YACHT SHOW 6th – 9th APRIL 2017 West Australian superyacht builder…

Successful Delivery of 46m Catamaran Charley

Successful Delivery of 46m Catamaran Charley Australian Superyacht specialists Echo Yachts successfully launch and deliver 46m Shadow Vessel ‘Charley’ Western Australia’s largest superyacht builder Echo Yachts is proud to announce…

Australian Superyacht specialists Echo Yachts, Sorgiovanni Design and One2three Naval Architects team up for new 120m Trimaran Design

Australian Superyacht specialists Echo Yachts, Sorgiovanni Design and One2three Naval Architects team up for new 120m Trimaran Design Announcing the new Sorgiovanni Design – 120m Trimaran design Sorgiovanni Design, Echo…

White Rabbit Golf in the news!

White Rabbit Golf in the news! Check out the latest news update for our current build projects

First renderings of Echo Yachts’ new builds released

First renderings of Echo Yachts’ new builds released Australian superyacht builder Echo Yachts is pleased to report that work on their two new build projects is on schedule and progressing…

Echo Yachts first major fibreglass infusion

Echo Yachts first major fibreglass infusion On Thursday last week, our fibreglass team infused the largest ever section of a mold in one go and the most complicated layup ever…

Update 46m GRP Shadow Vessel Echo Yachts are now please to announce that we are well into the 46m cat GRP shadow vessel we started on a few months ago. All…

Media Release

Media Release Largest-­Ever Australian Built Super­‐Yacht to be built in Henderson A Singapore‐based family has formed Echo Yachts, a yacht builder based in Western Australia’s Henderson Marine Precinct to undertake the…

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By SuperyachtNews 23 Aug 2023

Echo Yachts launch 56m Charley 2

The aluminium catamaran adventure and support yacht is the largest catamaran motoryacht built in australia….

“It’s a very special day for the teams at Echo Yachts and One2Three Naval Architects seeing the fruits of our combined efforts in the launch of Charley 2,” says Mark Stothard, Director of Echo Marine Group. “It sits perfectly on the design waterline and is one of the most complete vessels I have seen at launch.” After a few weeks of commissioning and trails, then she will be off on her first adventure, he adds.

Construction of Charley 2 was completed within three years of the project being announced. At 56m and 1041 GT volume, the new aluminium hulled Charley 2 is a significantly larger variant of its predecessor Charley , a composite hulled, 50m yacht delivered in 2017. 

Echo Yachts’ decision to build Charley 2 with a full-custom designed aluminium hull was aimed at improving hydrodynamic efficiency and enabled the use of much smaller engines to propel the vessel. 

Charley 2 ’s larger layout also provides a more spacious interior accommodation, outdoor entertaining areas and significant water-toy carrying capacity. 

Sea trials commence at the beginning of September, with delivery expected several weeks later.

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Yacht Doctor? This 164-Foot Catamaran Can Transform Into a Floating Hospital

Project echo has arrived at just the right time., rachel cormack.

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Rachel Cormack's Most Recent Stories

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While support vessels represent a burgeoning segment of the superyacht world, they’re seldom stylish. These no-frills workhorses tend to favor function over form, but Echo Yachts has just flipped the script with a remarkable new design known as the Project Echo Humanitarian Support Vessel.

The Australian yard partnered with the London-based studio Bannenberg & Rowell and Incat Crowther Naval Architects to create the 164-foot catamaran, which is geared toward “philanthropic clients looking to support humanitarian missions in challenging, remote and shallow-water locations.”

Building on the Project Echo Adventure Support Yacht (ASY), which was unveiled in 2017, the multihull pairs a functional layout for moving tons of medical equipment with a handsome exterior for which the yard is known. The goal of the HSV is to be as seaworthy and medically relevant as any shadow vessel can be, without compromising on its performance and ability to re-adapt to the mothership.

Project Echo HSV can be customized to any owner’s requirements. The interior may be fitted with medical rooms, laboratories, medical supply storage spaces, as well as isolated treatment rooms on the exterior, which feature a specially configured HVAC system to provide 100 percent fresh air and minimize the risk of contamination.

• Echo Yachts

The exterior also sports an expansive aft deck that comes complete with an integrated cargo-deck, rail-fastening system. The deck can accommodate large tenders, medical supplies and a helicopter to support medevac or guest transfers. On top of that, a heavy-duty, 12-tonne, knuckle-boom crane can be used to move cargo containers, making the delivery of crucial medical supplies or even drinking water, much easier.

Performance-wise, the vessel delivers exceptional fuel efficiency and has a 4,000-mile range. She is built to weather tough oceanic conditions, so no destination is off limits.

“The catamaran platform offers stability, fuel-efficient range and space—providing an ideal mothership for adventure and humanitarian operations whenever the need might arise,” Dickie Bannenberg, managing director at Bannenberg & Rowell, said in a press release.

Given current circumstances, the cat could prove particularly useful in disseminating Covid-19 vaccines to remote locations when that day arrives.

Check out more photos of the catamaran below:

Rachel Cormack is a digital editor at Robb Report. She cut her teeth writing for HuffPost, Concrete Playground, and several other online publications in Australia, before moving to New York at the…

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Motor Yacht

Echo is a custom motor yacht launched in 1990 by Oceanfast and most recently refitted in 2013.

Oceanfast is a world class Australian super yacht builder, offering its customers exciting designs and specialising in manufacturing excellence with personal service. Oceanfast has produced a fleet of the finest, most distinctive and awarded motor yachts in the world.

Echo measures 40.25 metres in length, with a max draft of 1.50 feet and a beam of 7.90 feet.

Echo has an aluminium hull with an aluminium superstructure.

Bannenberg & Rowell is an award-winning superyacht design studio based in Fulham , the direct descendent of the Jon Bannenberg studio established in the early 1960s.

Echo also features naval architecture by Phil Curran Design.

Performance and Capabilities

Echo has a top speed of 24.70 knots and a cruising speed of 17.10 knots. She is powered by a twin waterjet propulsion system.

Echo has a fuel capacity of 10 litres, and a water capacity of 1,670 litres.

Accommodation

Echo accommodates up to 8 guests in 4 cabins. She also houses room for up to 7 crew members.

Other Specifications

Echo has a hull NB of Y03165.

• Yacht Builder Oceanfast No profile available
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• Exterior Designer Bannenberg & Rowell Design View profile

Yacht Specs

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A guide to Indian Lake, hammered by Thursday's storms

The Indian Lake area of Ohio was torn by storms Thursday night . Here's a guide to the lake:

Where is Indian Lake?

Indian Lake is in Logan County, about 70 miles northwest of Columbus.

How big is Indian Lake?

The lake is about 5,100 acres, making it the third largest lake in Ohio, behind Grand Lake St. Marys (13,500 acres) in Auglaize and Mercer counties and Mosquito Creek Lake (7,850 acres) in Trumbull County, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. In addition, Pymatuning Reservoir, which straddles Ohio and Pennsylvania, covers 14,000 acres.

Is Indian Lake natural?

Indian Lake is man-made. According to the ODNR , it began in 1851 as "Old Indian Lake," a feeder lake for the Miami & Erie Canal. A bulkhead completed in 1860 allowed the lake, then called Lewiston Reservoir, to grow to more than 6,300 acres. Although Indian Lake is very shallow, with an average depth of 6 feet, it has largely been spared the algae that has stained other Ohio lakes because of the Indian Lake Watershed Project, established in the 1990s to keep the water clean.

How many people live on Indian Lake?

About 1,300 people live in the lake's largest town, Russells Point, and another 1,200 live down the road in Lakeview, both on the lake's southern shore. Hundreds more live around the lake, many of them in seasonal trailer parks and campgrounds, making the area vulnerable to storms.

What is Indian Lake best known for?

For decades, an amusement park and dance halls along the lake's southern rim drew visitors from miles around and provided the lake's nickname, the "Midwest's Million Dollar Playground." The last bits of the amusement park were torn down in the early 1980s; only the I ndian Lake Rollarena in Russells Point provides a hint of the lake's entertainment past.

Was the 1960s hit "Indian Lake" about this lake?

No. The Cowsills' 1968 Top 10 hit "Indian Lake" is thought to be based on a lake in Upstate New York.

What is housing like around Indian lake?

Much of Indian Lake's homes remain trailers in campgrounds, especially on the north and west sides of the lake. But a growing number of large new homes have been built on the lake this century, especially on the lake's multiple islands and eastern shore. Many of the older, modest homes still sell under $100,000, but newer homes can command more than half a million dollars. The lake's real-estate landed it a spot on the HGTV shows "Island Life" and "Island Hunters."

What impact did the storms have on the lake's state park?

The ODNR has closed Indian Lake State Park, on the west side of the lake, until further notice. "ODNR staff and other emergency crews will assess the impact of the storm and reevaluate the status of the park later today," the department posted Friday . The 8,400-acre park is one of Ohio's four original state parks, created in 1949.

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Echo Yachts Reveals 31 Metre Catamaran Concept SP30

Australian multihull specialist Echo Yachts has teamed up with Misha Merzliakov Yacht Design to present a 31-metre fully customisable catamaran yacht concept .

Unveiled during the 2020 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show , the 31-metre SP30 has been added to Echo’s “Design Collection”.

The yacht is fully customisable in both arrangement and specification and features an exterior characterised by “masculine automotive exterior styling cues”.

Elsewhere, the concept features a reverse bow and wide aft deck for storing toys and tenders.

Also aft, a hydraulically lowering swim platform can be used to launch and retrieve the tender as well as delivering guests safely into the water for swimming, diving and other water sports.

Varying accommodation configurations are available inside the sub-500GT interior spanning five to six guest cabins for a total of 12 guests. The master cabins will sit on the main deck while the remaining guest cabins will be found on the lower deck.

Elsewhere, the wide 13.3 metre beam provides spacious living areas inside. A “deliberately casual elegant interior” combined with “clever ambient lighting” will result in “a warm and welcoming atmosphere on board”, the yard said.

The SP30 concept will benefit from the natural stability and shallow draft provided by the catamaran hull form and will boast a top speed of 20 knots and cruising speed of 15 knots.

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Cruising the Moskva River: A short guide to boat trips in Russia’s capital

There’s hardly a better way to absorb Moscow’s atmosphere than on a ship sailing up and down the Moskva River. While complicated ticketing, loud music and chilling winds might dampen the anticipated fun, this checklist will help you to enjoy the scenic views and not fall into common tourist traps.

How to find the right boat?

There are plenty of boats and selecting the right one might be challenging. The size of the boat should be your main criteria.

Plenty of small boats cruise the Moskva River, and the most vivid one is this yellow Lay’s-branded boat. Everyone who has ever visited Moscow probably has seen it.

This option might leave a passenger disembarking partially deaf as the merciless Russian pop music blasts onboard. A free spirit, however, will find partying on such a vessel to be an unforgettable and authentic experience that’s almost a metaphor for life in modern Russia: too loud, and sometimes too welcoming. Tickets start at $13 (800 rubles) per person.

Bigger boats offer smoother sailing and tend to attract foreign visitors because of their distinct Soviet aura. Indeed, many of the older vessels must have seen better days. They are still afloat, however, and getting aboard is a unique ‘cultural’ experience. Sometimes the crew might offer lunch or dinner to passengers, but this option must be purchased with the ticket. Here is one such  option  offering dinner for $24 (1,490 rubles).

If you want to travel in style, consider Flotilla Radisson. These large, modern vessels are quite posh, with a cozy restaurant and an attentive crew at your service. Even though the selection of wines and food is modest, these vessels are still much better than other boats.

Surprisingly, the luxurious boats are priced rather modestly, and a single ticket goes for $17-$32 (1,100-2,000 rubles); also expect a reasonable restaurant bill on top.

How to buy tickets?

Women holding photos of ships promise huge discounts to “the young and beautiful,” and give personal invitations for river tours. They sound and look nice, but there’s a small catch: their ticket prices are usually more than those purchased online.

“We bought tickets from street hawkers for 900 rubles each, only to later discover that the other passengers bought their tickets twice as cheap!”  wrote  (in Russian) a disappointed Rostislav on a travel company website.

Nevertheless, buying from street hawkers has one considerable advantage: they personally escort you to the vessel so that you don’t waste time looking for the boat on your own.

Prices start at $13 (800 rubles) for one ride, and for an additional $6.5 (400 rubles) you can purchase an unlimited number of tours on the same boat on any given day.

Flotilla Radisson has official ticket offices at Gorky Park and Hotel Ukraine, but they’re often sold out.

Buying online is an option that might save some cash. Websites such as  this   offer considerable discounts for tickets sold online. On a busy Friday night an online purchase might be the only chance to get a ticket on a Flotilla Radisson boat.

This  website  (in Russian) offers multiple options for short river cruises in and around the city center, including offbeat options such as ‘disco cruises’ and ‘children cruises.’ This other  website  sells tickets online, but doesn’t have an English version. The interface is intuitive, however.

Buying tickets online has its bad points, however. The most common is confusing which pier you should go to and missing your river tour.

“I once bought tickets online to save with the discount that the website offered,” said Igor Shvarkin from Moscow. “The pier was initially marked as ‘Park Kultury,’ but when I arrived it wasn’t easy to find my boat because there were too many there. My guests had to walk a considerable distance before I finally found the vessel that accepted my tickets purchased online,” said the man.

There are two main boarding piers in the city center:  Hotel Ukraine  and  Park Kultury . Always take note of your particular berth when buying tickets online.

Where to sit onboard?

Even on a warm day, the headwind might be chilly for passengers on deck. Make sure you have warm clothes, or that the crew has blankets ready upon request.

The glass-encased hold makes the tour much more comfortable, but not at the expense of having an enjoyable experience.

Getting off the boat requires preparation as well. Ideally, you should be able to disembark on any pier along the way. In reality, passengers never know where the boat’s captain will make the next stop. Street hawkers often tell passengers in advance where they’ll be able to disembark. If you buy tickets online then you’ll have to research it yourself.

There’s a chance that the captain won’t make any stops at all and will take you back to where the tour began, which is the case with Flotilla Radisson. The safest option is to automatically expect that you’ll return to the pier where you started.

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Angler researches lowering lakes from the bottom to cool waters and help trout survive

An avid angler believes allowing more water to be released from the bottom of lakes will give coldwater fish like trout a better chance to survive the hot summer months.

“I would notice that Laurel Hill Creek would super heat in the really warm months of summer,” said John MacDonald, 66, of Rockwood, Somerset County. 

“The trout would suffer horribly, many would die and the ones that didn’t, took refuge downstream and left the area.”

In the heat of the summer, MacDonald would wear snorkeling gear and swim down the creek looking for fish.

“I noticed they would hide in the deeper pools," he said, "and I would find a cold water spring down there, that they were all huddled up against.”

Ongoing research

About five years ago, he approached Camp Soles , a nearby children’s camp, about opening their lake’s bottom drain pipe to release some of the colder water to see how that would impact the temperature of the water flowing downstream. The camp’s 18-acre lake flows into Lost Run and then into Laurel Hill Creek.

“We had to make sure that at all times that water flowed over the top for the health of the lake,” he said. “We had to find a blending point which let water over the top, but enough cold water off the bottom to bring (the temperature) down,” he said.

Let's go fishing: A look at what you need to know to fish for trout this spring across Pennsylvania

He started measuring the temperature of the water at several locations, including in Lost Run before it reached the lake, in the lake itself and then several spots down stream. 

During the heat of the summer, he said water coming into the lake would be below 70 degrees. The water flowing over the spillway would oftentimes be 80 degrees or more and the water below where the spillway and bottom pipe blend in Lost Run would be back down to below 70.

“We are able to get to the same temperature below the dam as it was coming into the lake,” he said. “We were actually able to get to that same point, as though the dam wasn’t there.”

Susan Fletcher, president of the Friends of Camp Soles board of directors, has been observing MacDonald’s efforts.

“It’s not only that the fish are more vigorous and survive better, but there’s something about what they feed on that has improved,” she said.

Fletcher said MacDonald is a friend of the camp and they appreciate his efforts.

“He’s clearly interested in the environment and when you have a summer camp, that’s what you want the kids to do, is to appreciate the natural world,” she said.

She said the dam was named Lake Tris for a descendant of the camp’s founders. She said there are online references to the waterway that have it also spelled as Lake Triss. “It’s hard to get that changed,” she said.

“One of the most popular things in recent years has been fishing,” she said about the campers enjoying the lake to catch catfish, bass and a variety of panfish.

“We love that John has taken an interest and is keeping (the lake) healthy. Because one of my favorite sayings is, when you tug at one thing in nature, you find it attached to the rest of the world.”

This year, MacDonald is continuing his research with recording temperatures and studying the ratio of water coming over the spillway with the water being released from the bottom of the lake. He also wants to measure water volume, too.

More: Pennsylvania fishing license fees to remain same in 2025 because of increased sales

“Once I establish the ratio of what is needed, other lakes with a spillway and bottom pipe can experiment with how far to open the pipe each year,” he said about making it a simple process for people to mimic or at least try. 

He said he’s not changing the amount of water being released, but blending the two sources of water discharge.

With the help of Camp Soles, he said the goal is to, “Someday find a very simple solution for these types of lakes to bring the water temperature down below 70, and protect our cold water heritage.”

MacDonald isn’t officially trained to study waterways, but said he’s an avid sportsman who wants to protect the fishery. He’s hoping his research can be used by state agencies and private lake owners “for the betterment of our cold-water heritage.” 

State agency response

Lakes in Pennsylvania are managed by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

Lauren Camarda, regional communications manager for the DEP, said, “A cold water, low-level discharge is not always required or beneficial, but many dams have been retrofitted with cold water releases over the years. While there could be benefits from discharging from the bottom, it could have the unintended consequence of releasing anoxic water (water with low levels of dissolved oxygen that fish need), sediment that can pollute the water downstream, or entrapping or impinging fish in the lake.”

If the lake has to retrofit its pipes on the bottom of a lake it can be cost prohibitive based on what is needed.

“Simply 'cracking open' the low-level valve is generally not a viable solution as high velocity flow could be detrimental to the valve and debris may lodge in the valve preventing it from being able to shut,” she said through an email. “If a dam owner wants to change normal operation of the pool level, a permit is required from DEP. DEP’s division of dam safety consults with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission regarding situations where a cold-water release requirement may be warranted. Ultimately, this idea may have merit in certain situations but must be approached on a case specific-basis and in concert with DEP review to ensure that it is in fact beneficial for aquatic life downstream. DEP encourages dam owners that are interested in this to contact DEP to determine if it is something that could work for them.”

Mike Parker, communications director for the Fish and Boat Commission agreed that colder water may help trout survive the summer months, but referred questions about lowering lakes to achieve that to the DEP.

  Brian Whipkey is the outdoors columnist for USA TODAY Network sites in Pennsylvania. Contact him at [email protected] and sign up for our weekly Go Outdoors PA newsletter email on this website's homepage under your login name.  Follow him on Facebook @whipkeyoutdoors , and Instagram at whipkeyoutdoors.