If some years ago you had to imagine a trawler not propelled by shaft drives you would have been considered heretic.
But here we have the new Beneteau 50, with Volvo IPS pods and a joystick to make maneuvering as easy as possible.
This also means gaining loads of space, space used for a full-beam stateroom amidships. The VIP cabin is in front, and shares the head with the third one – which offers two almost queen-sized bunks.
The Swift Trawler 50 on test
During our test, in a rather choppy sea, we got close to the top speed (reached some days before on calm waters), reading 24,8 knots at 3,620 rpm. But we found a pace more suitable for a trawler, cruising at 22 knots and 3,500 revs for a fuel consumption of 168 liters per hour (44 gph). Should you want to save even more fuel, you can slow down to 2,500 rpm, 11 kn and 70 lph (18.5 gph).
The Swift Trawler 50 in numbers
Length o.a. 14.99 mt (49 ft 2in)
Beam 4.65 mt (15 ft 3 in)
Draft 1.05 mt (3 ft 5 in)
Displacement 16 tons
Fuel 2,400 lt (634 US gal)
Fresh Water 800 lt (211 US gal)
Engines 2×435 HP Volvo Penta IPS 600
