The “Launchpad” is not yet very old and already has a lot to tell – because until she was allowed to set off for the Caribbean with her current name and her new owner Mark Zuckerberg, it was not clear for a long time who would ultimately get her. It wasn’t the Facebook boss himself who ordered it, but rather the Russian oligarch Vladimir Potanin.
But one of Russia’s richest men was never allowed to receive his yacht. Even before her extradition, he was sanctioned by some countries, which made it difficult for him to trade with Western companies and blocked the handover of the yacht. The ship, known at the time as “Project 1010”, which was actually supposed to be called “Katyusha”, initially remained in the Netherlands.
In December, the British tabloid Sun reported that another billionaire appeared to be interested in the ship. Even back then, Mark Zuckerberg was mentioned as a possible buyer. The yacht was recently officially renamed for the first time and is now called “Launchpad”. The usually very well-informed YouTuber “eSysman” then reported: Zuckerberg has probably struck.
The “Launchpad” was built in 2022. She is 118 meters long and will offer space for 24 guests and a 48-person crew. It was built by the Dutch company Feadship and various reports put the price at around $300 million.
When buying the “Launchpad”, Zuckerberg apparently took an example from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, because it wasn’t just a ship. “eSysman” reports that the Facebook boss also acquired the yacht “Dapple”, which is now called “Wingman” (IMO 9650028).
The “Wingman” is said to have cost around $30 million and was previously owned by Gabe Newell, co-founder of the gaming company Valve. The ship is a so-called shadow ship, i.e. a kind of oversized storage room for all kinds of utensils that don’t fit on the main ship or simply don’t look good there. Pictures of the “Wingman”, for example, show a helicopter and a crane that can launch other watercraft from the deck.
Jeff Bezos is relying on a very similar concept with the “Abeona”. The Amazon founder stores everything that doesn’t fit on the sailing yacht “Koru” on the second ship – these can even be guests, because in addition to the entire storage space, the “Abeona” will also offer two suites for four guests (you can find out here more). The “Wingman” will have space for up to six guests.
According to “eSysman”, the mega yacht “Launchpad” is currently on its way to Sint Maarten in the Caribbean. The ship is currently in the port of Gibraltar, which is often the last stop before the Atlantic crossing to the west. The “Wingman” is already anchored in the States, more precisely in Florida.