A personal statement from Big Fish owner Richard Beattie, who is also chairman of the shipyard that built her, Aquos Yachts.

We did not take the decision to forego the Northeast Passage lightly. It was made after much discussion among the Aquos Yachts team, which now includes YCO, our new central listing agent for Big Fish.

Ironically, what finally made me comfortable with this decision was the realization that we have completely proven what we initially set out to do nine months ago, when we left Auckland Harbor for Big Fish’s first stop in Tahiti.

We have drawn major accolades from the world yachting press, drawn rave reviews from more than 1,500 visitors aboard the boat during the Fort Lauderdale boat show, cruised to some of the most remote areas in the world, including a month in Antarctica, and cruised more than the entire circumference of the planet at its widest point, the Equator, without a single delaying system failure.

As Big Fish’s owner -- which makes me her harshest critic as well as her most ardent supporter – I can honestly say she has nothing left to prove. I have spent almost two months aboard since she was launched and I can unabashedly testify to her comfort, seaworthiness, mechanical integrity, luxuriousness and her capacity to offer to me the kind of yachting experiences I had always dreamed of having and sharing with my family and friends.

But as a successful businessman I realize that the only way to any commercial success is developing the market for my products and services. Had we taken the Northeast Passage, for which we were on the verge of receiving full permitting (at considerable expense), we would have ended up halfway around the world from a major portion of the yachting market who had never stepped aboard Big Fish.

With another Aquos Yacht (50M, six-stateroom StarFish) less than 18 months from delivery, our team – with my full support – came to the proper strategic conclusion that the best interest of Big Fish and Aquos Yachts could only be served by bringing the yacht to Monaco this coming September.

Along with the rest of my team, I am deeply and personally disappointed at missing the opportunity to do what no luxury yacht has ever done before. For those of you who have supported our program and encouraged our attempt to make yachting history, my team and I offer you our deepest apologies for this change of direction, and our sincere hopes that you can appreciate the importance of the rationale behind our ultimate decision.

Sincerely,Richard Beattie