Marine

Lockheed Martin-designed experimental naval vessel up for sale

Lockheed Martin-designed experimental naval vessel up for sale
The Sea Slice in its current home of San Diego (Photo: Yachtworld)
The Sea Slice in its current home of San Diego (Photo: Yachtworld)
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The Sea Slice in its current home of San Diego (Photo: Yachtworld)
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The Sea Slice in its current home of San Diego (Photo: Yachtworld)
A back view of the Sea Slice (Photo: Yachtworld)
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A back view of the Sea Slice (Photo: Yachtworld)
It looks like the Sea Slice can sleep at least six (Photo: Yachtworld)
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It looks like the Sea Slice can sleep at least six (Photo: Yachtworld)
The Sea Slice's galley (Photo: Yachtworld)
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The Sea Slice's galley (Photo: Yachtworld)
The shower-equipped bathroom (Photo: Yachtworld)
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The shower-equipped bathroom (Photo: Yachtworld)
It also has a washer and dryer (Photo: Yachtworld)
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It also has a washer and dryer (Photo: Yachtworld)
The Sea Slice's bridge (Photo: Yachtworld)
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The Sea Slice's bridge (Photo: Yachtworld)
It's powered by two 3,480 hp diesel engines (Photo: Yachtworld)
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It's powered by two 3,480 hp diesel engines (Photo: Yachtworld)
It also features two 180-kW Caterpillar diesel electric generators (Photo: Yachtworld)
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It also features two 180-kW Caterpillar diesel electric generators (Photo: Yachtworld)
The Sea Slice at sea, sporting a previous paint job (Photo: US Navy)
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The Sea Slice at sea, sporting a previous paint job (Photo: US Navy)
The Sea Slice at sea, sporting a previous paint job (Photo: US Navy)
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The Sea Slice at sea, sporting a previous paint job (Photo: US Navy)
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Any millionaire can buy themselves a fancy yacht, but if you want a conversation piece ... well, it helps if it has a story behind it, and the Lockheed Martin-built Sea Slice certainly does. Launched in 1996 by the US Navy as a military support vessel, the experimental watercraft features a unique hull design that reportedly allows it to remain as stable as a conventional ship three times its size. It cost US$15 million to design and build, but you can have it now for the low, low price of just $180,000.

The Sea Slice utilizes a variation on the SWATH (Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull) design.

A regular SWATH boat has two hulls, kind of like a catamaran. Whereas a catamaran's hulls resemble skinnier versions of a conventional single hull, however, a SWATH's are more like cylindrical pontoons that sit completely below the surface. The struts that connect those hulls to the rest of the boat are quite narrow, thus minimizing volume at the sea's surface, where all the wave energy is located. Because the hulls themselves sit deeper in the water, they're not affected much by the waves.

In the case of the Sea Slice, there are four shorter teardrop-shaped hulls – two on each side, one behind the other. Apparently this modification reduces waves caused by the boat, along with hydrodynamic drag. That drag reduction allows it to travel at higher speeds for a given amount of horsepower, as compared to other SWATH boats of a similar size and displacement.

The Sea Slice at sea, sporting a previous paint job (Photo: US Navy)
The Sea Slice at sea, sporting a previous paint job (Photo: US Navy)

The 105-ft (32-m) long, 55-ft (17-m) wide, 180-ton (163-tonne) watercraft features two 3,480 hp diesel engines, two 180-kW Caterpillar diesel electric generators, and (if its specs are still the same as they were when it was first built) a top speed of 30 knots (56 km/h, or 35 mph). There's no word on how many people it can accommodate, although judging by the photos, there are at least six bunks. It also has a full galley, shower-equipped bathroom, plus a washer and dryer.

... and it's now up for sale, in its current home port of San Diego. If you have an extra 180 grand lying around and are interested in acquiring a piece of naval history, just check out the link below.

Source: Yachtworld

View gallery - 11 images
12 comments
12 comments
mooseman
I would soooooo love to buy this if I had the money! I'll bet it costs a packet to run though - it'd really chew through the fuel.
Vince Pack
Wow - if I only had the money I'd love to turn that into my world traveling vacation home! So much potential there...
Tom Lee Mullins
If I had the money, I would not hesitate to get it. It looks really cool. I think it would be a great place to have parties and events.
Racqia Dvorak
$180,000 for something like that seems too good to be true. I bet some serious repairs would be necessary.
David Elderkin
oh wow, i wonder if the wife will let me sell the house and buy this to travel around the world. Stack up a 10kw solar array on top and it would power its self
Bob
$180,000 may sound cheap but how much does it cost to fuel up two 3,480 hp diesel engines? How many feet deep must the marina be to even bring this thing in to dock? How many feet to the gallon does it get when cruising? 35 mph seems a little slow for a boat with this much horsepower. $180,000 sounds like the scrap metal price because it is so impractical.
Kevin Ritchey
Someone PLEASE buy this with me. We could time-share it out and live anyplace we pleased. Making money from it would not be an issue and I'm about to lose my home from only living on Social Security disability payments of $970/month from past spinal cancer. Sucks to be me. This would keep me from becoming Soylent Green. The novelty factor would bring in the necessary cash to maintain it alone. What a life-changing experience this could be.
Dawar Saify
How about buy it, repair and renovate and keep at Port most of the time, then can save on fuel costs.
John Banister
I think any non-military customer who buys this will have to add in the cost of repowering it. This looks to have too high a rate of fuel consumption for any non-military use. It's too bad they didn't build it with diesel electric propulsion and the option to run less diesel when economy outweighs speed.
guzmanchinky
It's 1 million dollars, not 180k...
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