Emirates Team NZ come clean about their foiling AC72

Impressive video of the Kiwi team's AC72

Emirates Team New Zealand has come clean about the ability of their new AC72 wingmasted wonder to get up on its foils fully. This has put paid to skeptics believing that certain clandestine photos that have been taken of the boat in sea trials were the work of a skilled photo editor.

Renowned yachting commentators Martin Tasker and Peter Lester were given a prime view of the Emirates Team New Zealand AC72 in full action. Very rarely are they lost for words… today they were, but they liked what they saw, and in Peter’s case he enjoyed the ride!

The question remains: can foiling be sustained safely on the short America’s Cup courses?

Emirates Team New Zealand MD Grant Dalton said all the teams will be testing foil design so there will be no surprises there.

“The thrust of our testing is to determine if foils enhance performance overall. How will they affect upwind speed? Might that nullify any downwind gain? In addition, the effect on boat-handling in upper wind ranges needs to be assessed carefully.

“There is a tendency for the boat to dig in when it is bearing away and the placement of the dagger foils and their shape has a marked effect on this. Foiling is only part of the equation. Right now we see as many negatives as positives.”

So an airborne America's Cup...wow.