NYB Swansea is able to bring you some of the first CGI and real world variants of the lift keel version of the Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 349, this long keel combines the ballast and lateral stability into a single, low profile part which is retractable by way of a hydraulic ram.
This new design goes against the mould where the typical thinking on a lift keel yacht has been to build a ballast box underneath the hull from which a lightweight daggerboard drops down, the key advantage from the new system is improved performance at all angles of sail.
The new Jeanneau 349 will be one of the first mass production boats to offer this shallow depth accessibility that you would typically find on a cruiser yacht mixed in with the ballast and keel profile of a racer.
This version of the yacht will offer exactly the same weight in the keel as on the fixed keel version but at a deeper draft with a lower profile creating less drag, this system allows the yacht to draw 2.54m when extended and only 1.26m when retracted.
Jeanneau has also recognised that one of the major benefits in a traditional lift keel is the ability to beach the vessel however, with this in mind they have reinforced the hull as standard in order to attach beaching legs for the 349 to allow this.
Jeanneau has already proven its ability to understand the market and design a product which fits the requirement in a swing keel yacht as demonstrated by the wildly successful Sun Odyssey 379, this new concept is another great idea for a small cruiser and Jeanneau have pushed the envelope again offering all the benefits of a cruiser which performs like a racer.
