Azteca
A key growth factor for Feadship was its ability to partner with independent exterior designers like Jon Bannenberg. 44.80-metre Azteca and 46.60-metre Paraiso were built in tandem by the yards in Aalsmeer and Kaag, with the owner’s request for eight more being declined so as not to shut out new clients for five years. Dubbed ‘greenhouse’ yachts because they contained so much glass on their top decks that locals thought they were building giant greenhouses, these futuristic all-aluminium Feadships combined 22 knots of speed with staggering slabs of glass and stepped sheer lines that were years ahead of their time. When media mogul Malcom Forbes saw the sleek, angular Azteca his response was simply, "That’s the most exciting thing I’ve ever seen! I want one like that.”