Multiplast to build the new Brit Air Imoca Open 60'
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The 2003 Solitaire du Figaro winner Armel Le Cléac'h and his sponsor Brit Air have chosen the Multiplast yard to build their new Imoca 60' monohull for the 2008 Vendée Globe. Designed by the Finot Group, the boat will start to take shape in Vannes (southern Brittany, France) in early October 2006.
Brit Air will be the second Imoca Open 60 monohull built by Multiplast for the 6th edition of the Vendée Globe (start date: November 9, 2008), world's greatest solo race around the planet, where reliability and security are key factors, along with performance. Factors that have always been at the heart of the yard's philosophy, as its race record reveals.

Gilles Ollier: '...We are very happy to build this boat for Armel Le Cléac'h. He is a talented skipper who will count among the rising stars of the very demanding Imoca Class. Furthermore, Brit Air is an airline, a field of activity for which accuracy, quality and performance are essential. We share these values and enjoy an excellent cooperation with them. And finally, the company is based in Brittany like ours, and shows a real attachment to its identity...'.

9 months of build

Yann Penfornis, Brit Air Project Manager for Multiplast: '... We will start working on the deck as early as the beginning of October. Then in December, we will tackle the hull. At the end of February 2007, we will start the deck – hull assembly process. Once this is over, we will begin the paint job, fit the deck hardware and install the engine in May. We will also handle the construction of the rudder blades. The launch is due to take place in June...'.
Like all the racing prototypes built by Multiplast, Brit Air will be made of a carbon sandwich using a honeycomb (Nomex ) core, and oven cured. The build process will imply female carbon moulds, in order to ensure perfect dilatation homogeneity during the curing phase. Multiplast's expertise regarding this type of process is world-renowned, in the field of competition sailing as well as in the industrial domain. Armel Le Cléac'h: '... I'd had the opportunity, while supervising the transformation of another boat, to acknowledge Multiplast's know-how and professionalism. It has thus been quite easy for Brit Air and myself to choose them, since we share the same approach of technical management. And with Multiplast, we are certain to obtain a boat delivered right on schedule...'.

A simple boat

Coming from the Figaro One-Design class, in which boats are easy to handle, Armel wanted a simple ocean-racer. By selecting Jean-Marie Finot, whose designs have won the last 4 editions of the Vendée Globe, and the Multiplast yard known for the quality and reliability of their products – and whose building facility is just a few steps away from the designer's office – the Britton skipper opted for the reactivity of a performing duet.
Brit Air is an evolution of Imoca Goupe Finot 60', including the one currently being built by Multiplast (started last spring). Jean-Marie Finot: '... Brit Air benefits from our past experiences. She will be a powerful and stable boat. She's a bit in the same spirit as Geodis, winner of the 3rd Vendée Globe, yet has been designed taking into account the parameters of modern boat technology, including moveable appendages...'.

Copyright-free pictures for press use : François Seguin / Multiplast Pro ou Anne Le Bour / Brit Air Pro

Brit Air / Anne Le Bour / Aéroport / CS 27925 / 29679 MORLAIX Cedex / T. +33 (0) 298 627 194 – Fax. +33 (0) 298 627 766