Swan 78
Nautor Swan · German Frers · 2017
Updated
The Swan 78 is a 23.99 m planing racing yacht designed by German Frers and built by Nautor Swan, first launched in 2017. It races in Maxi.
Length
23.99 m
78′ 8″
Beam
6.42 m
Draft
4.03 m
Displacement
43.4 t
Sail area
347 m²
On the podium
Where a Swan 78 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
38%
of 16 starts by 2 boats
Wins
19%
Read from 16 starts by 2 boats between 2022 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Swan 78 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Rolex Swan Cup2026- Rolex Swan Cup2022
Raced one we are missing?
Report a regattaRound the buoys, or offshore
A short windward-leeward and a night at sea ask different things of a boat. Here is how this one does in each.
Round the buoys
—
Not enough data yet: 2 races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
43%
of these races end on the podium
Who she races against
The designs a Swan 78 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Some of the boats it races against
How the Swan 78 has fared against each of them, boat against boat on corrected time. Ordered by how often the two meet, not by who wins.
Speed at every angle
The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.
Upwind VMG
7.64
39°
Beam reach
12.52
90°
Broad reach
14.11
135°
Downwind VMG
11.16
170°
Speed in knots at 20 knots of true wind. Green marks the angles that pay: the closest useful beat and the deepest run worth sailing.
Where it wins and where it pays
Every boat is judged against its own measurements — length, weight, sail area. The quicker those say it should be, the more it has to deliver just to break even. Going fast is not enough: it has to go faster than its own numbers promised.
Soft conditions suit it. In the light it does more than its numbers promise, and gives some of that back when the wind arrives.
Where it gains
Its best ground is on the beat in a strong breeze, where it goes better than its measurements say it should, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
It falls short running deep once it pipes up, giving away time it never gets back. That is a hull that wants to get up and go, and needs pressure to do it.
Above the line it delivers more than promised and gains on the fleet. Below, it falls short. Move the wind: plenty of boats sit on one side in the light and the other when it blows.
Full width is 1.6 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.
How fast is a Swan 78
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 4.69 | 6.58 | 7.23 | 7.64 |
| 52° | 7.29 | 9.82 | 10.57 | 10.98 |
| 60° | 7.80 | 10.29 | 10.99 | 11.36 |
| 75° | 8.21 | 10.67 | 11.46 | 11.93 |
| 90° | 8.07 | 10.63 | 11.67 | 12.52 |
| 110° | 7.71 | 10.75 | 11.80 | 12.76 |
| 120° | 7.52 | 10.73 | 12.13 | 13.41 |
| 135° | 6.80 | 10.09 | 11.80 | 14.11 |
| 150° | 5.67 | 8.67 | 10.84 | 12.88 |
| Run VMG | 4.91 | 7.51 | 9.41 | 11.16 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 1000 kg.
Rigging
Swan 78 rig and sail dimensions
A Swan 78 carries 30.94 m of mainsail hoist on a 10.21 m boom, a forestay 31.38 m above the deck. Typical figures across the 2 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails