Shipping billionaire built a 10,500hp carbon fiber superyacht to make it easier to have his lunch and dinner in different places

When billionaire Theodore P. Angelopoulos commissioned the Thunder superyacht, he wanted his own version of the Concorde.

However, instead of flying across the Atlantic, this vessel would zoom across the Mediterranean.

The Greek shipping and steel magnate envisioned a boat so fast that he could have breakfast in Saint-Tropez, lunch in Monaco, and dinner in Portofino without ever stepping ashore.

Talk about valuing your time.

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This superyacht is much faster than it looks

Delivered in 1998 by Oceanfast in Western Australia, Thunder was no ordinary plaything for the rich.

At 163 feet long and built almost entirely from carbon fiber and Kevlar (the same materials used in fighter jets and hypercars), it was engineered for outrageous performance.

Angelopoulos’ design brief became legendary: “Breakfast in Saint-Tropez, lunch in Monaco, dinner in Portofino.”

To bring it to life, he enlisted famed designer Jon Bannenberg and naval architect Phil Curran, whose collaboration pushed yacht engineering into aerospace territory.

Thunder’s 10,500 horsepower came from an extraordinary CODAG (Combined Diesel and Gas) propulsion setup.

This includes two massive MTU diesel engines, paired with a central Textron Lycoming gas turbine, all funneled through three KaMeWa waterjets.

That powertrain could blast Thunder to 40 knots (about 46mph), which is absurdly fast for a yacht of its size, and only slightly slower than Lamborghini’s 101ft Tecnomar yacht.

A trim system originally designed to stabilize missile launchers kept the ride smooth, while its emergency steering could swing the vessel from side to side in under four seconds.

It might look like a leisure boat, but it’s more like a missile in metallic paint.

Truly the Concorde of the sea

Yet for all its performance, the Thunder superyacht was also a floating work of art.

Its deck hid a seven-meter pool that doubled as a tender bay, while below deck it hosted ten guests in unapologetic luxury.

Later refits took it from minimalist futurism to full-blown glamour, with stingray skin finishes, mirrored panels, and Cavalli-inspired furniture.

In many ways, Thunder was the Concorde of the sea.

While the supersonic jet turned the skies into a racetrack, Thunder transformed the Mediterranean into its own runway.

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