The enormous size of the Francisco - berthed at Wellington - is misleading. It can move its 1516 tonnes at more than 58 knots. Picture / Mark Mitchell
The world's fastest ship looked menacingly quick, even at berth, on a brief stopover in Wellington yesterday.
The 99m dual-hulled Francisco called in on its way from Tasmania to South America.
Made by Australian ferry builder Incat, it recorded a top speed of 58.1 knots (107.6km/h) during sea trials last
month. Team New Zealand's giant catamaran clocked 44.15 knots in its last America's Cup race.
Incat said only a few speedboats could top 58 knots - and none of them carried 150 cars and 1000 passengers.
Weighing 1516 tonnes, Francisco ran on one turbine on liquefied natural gas and one on marine distillate when it recorded its top speed.
