By John Armstrong

I had the pleasure of running and reviewing the Swift 50 when I was in Annapolis last October; the boat was supplied by Beneteau America and was moored at Annapolis Yacht Sales.

The French-built Swift 50 encompasses a traditional trawler look but with her twin 435 hp Volvo Penta IPS 600’s performs like a sedan bridge or a sport cruiser, topping out at 24.8 knots in calm seas. With the dynamic stability there was very little roll in all the conditions we encountered. The boat has vertical pilothouse windows that gives you a panoramic view from the helm. There is a joystick docking control at the lower helm as well as on the flybridge helm plus an an optional third joystick in the aft cockpit.

The Swift 50 has well thought out accommodations which make it a very comfortable boat for onboard  living. I will be writing a full review on this outstanding boat in a future issue, so once again stay tuned!

Length Overall: 49'2" / 14.99 m

Hull Length: 43'9" / 13.33 m

Beam: 15'3" / 4.65 m

Light displacement: 35,264 lbs / 16,000 kg

Fuel Capacity: 2 x 317 gals / 2 x 1,200 L

Water Capacity: 2 x 106 gals / 2 x 400 L

Max Engine Power (hp) : 2 x 435 HP Volvo Penta

IPS 600

Price: US $900,000

Photo Captions:

1) The innovative design of the bottom is specially conceived for the IPS dirve system and enables a range of over 100 miles at crusing speed and a fuel consumption of less than 30 litres per hour.

2) You're aboard an authentic traler, where every detail is designed to respond to a primary function: sailing long distances, in full safety and the utmost comfort.