I met Fairline’s Head of Design Andrew Pope standing on the swim platform of the U.K. builder’s newest offering under bluebird skies at the Cannes boat show.
Pope and I had been at the same place the year before aboard the builder’s highly anticipated 63 GTO. That model marked the first time the design team partnered with Italian design star Alberto Mancini to reinvigorate the brand’s lineup. That model nailed the design brief; I was interested to see if lightning would strike twice.
It was like déjà vu stepping aboard the 43. The exterior lines are exceptionally sporty and the interior is as wide open and bright as they come.
“I can’t wrap my head around why you called this the 43 Targa Open,” I sarcastically mentioned to Pope as I looked up at the biggest sunroof I’ve seen on a boat this size.
“Yes. It fits, I think,” he said. “With all our boats it’s about creating as much volume as possible. This is a 46-foot boat but when you look at its competition it feels much bigger.”
The trend toward larger sunroofs has been prevalent at almost every major show, but opening this nearly 8-foot-wide by 11-foot-long sunroof made me feel as if I just pulled the ragtop back on a Corvette. It simply changed the experience.
“The amount of effort you need to put in to build an opening of this size is huge,” said Pope. “If you look down the side windows you actually see the only two structures are on the other side of where the windows are. We have to put a lot effort into the pillars to keep them strong and stable.”
