Standing left to right: Jari Vanhatalo, Pekka Ahokas, Chris Winter, Tommi Lintunen, Allan Savolainen, Ville Savolainen
Red Sky Yachts: a culture of excellence
Red Sky Yachts is a unique combination of a generations-long tradition of non-compromising craftmanship, innovative design and a radically classic aesthetic approach. The boatyard’s modern facilities allow it to respond in scale to the most ambitious demands in the field.
Henrik Andersin, owner:
”My interest in becoming a part of the Red Sky Yachts’ story started when I realised that there were only an handful of places on the whole planet to hold such tradition, skill and culture in the manufacture of wooden boats – more often that not, if you really wanted a proper wooden boat, you would have to build one yourself.
I’m convinced that true quality never goes out of style. That’s why at Red Sky we build boats to last – not just technically, but also aesthetically – and to be proudly handed from one generation of owners to the next, gathering not only value with age, but also grace.”
Chris Winter, manager
”It’s the extensive restauration of the 12mR yact Blue Marlin that put us in league with the best in the world. Coping with the inspiring challenges of a project of such magnitude gave us the chance to develop the facilities and the contractor network without which no ambitious project can get off the ground.
Allan Savolainen, Master boat builder and designer
”We like to innovate, but not only for the sake of innovation. As an example, for the new Red Sky 29 we came up with an innovative modular production technique, that not only speeds up the process of building a wooden boat, but also allows us to build one-off boats in a small series. Embracing new technologies also helps us define and better execute what our clients ultimately want, which is absolute quality – no compromises, no shortcuts, no ifs and no buts. That’s what Red Sky Yachts is fundamentally about.”
Pekka Ahokas, yard manager
“Bring your boat to us and it will be properly cared for! We can arrange inside or outside storage, lifting and launch with our Marine Travelift, and many other services.”
Key dates
1998
Allan Savolainen graduates from the Finnish wooden boat academy and starts to work within the framework of the Kotka Wooden Boat Center cooperative.
2002
Henrik Andersin becomes Allan Savolainen’s client, commissioning extensive work on his two 6mR yachts, Maybe VI and Djinn.
2004
Henrik Andersin and Allan Savolainen found the Red Sky boatyard.
2007
The 12mR Blue Marlin arrives in Kotka in a state of extensive disrepair.
Henrik Andersin purchases the Wooden Boat Center from the city of Kotka.
A new, future-proof building facility is constructed. Work on the Blue Marlin gets under way under the supervision of the design firm Bedrick of Newport.
2014
The Blue Marlin, completely renovated, refurbished and brought to date, is set to sea.
2020
The Wooden boat center and the Red Sky boatyard merge to form Red Sky Yachts in its present form.
2021
In July, the Red Sky 29 line of yachts is introduced in the 12mR Evli World Championship in Helsinki. The RS29 model on show at the venue is ‘Antibes’. The Blue Marlin starts her race with a glorious win to finish second overall.
Present day
Red Sky Yachts continues to produce one-off designs, including the limited series of Red Sky 29.
A new modern 6mR in GRP, designed by Allan Savolainen, is under construction with an aim to race successfully in the 2022 worlds in Cascais.
The boatyard also continues to renovate classic yachts, both motor and sail, offering a full range of services including seasonal maintenance and repairs.
If you have a group interested in boat building, please contact us and we will try and arrange a tour of our facility.
We have been around and done a lot. See pics at Flickr.