America's Cup: Team New Zealand continue progress sailing Te Aihe

Team New Zealand continues to excite sailing fans with the continued progress in sailing their first AC75.

The crew has been hard at work over the past few weeks learning the ways of the radical new vessel as they look for areas to improve on for their second boat, flying over the Waitematā Harbour of its foils.

The current vessel, named 'Te Aihe', won't be the one they sail come the 2021 America's Cup, but has generated plenty of interest given the radical design.

"We're under no illusions that if we were to race the America's Cup in the exact boat we've got on the water now, then we wouldn't be too competitive," Team New Zealand designer Dan Bernasconi told the Herald in late September.

"There's not a huge window, which is why it's a pretty big advantage for us to be on the water ahead of the British and the Italians, because their window is rapidly disappearing."

The AC75 is a complex vessel, with a number of mechanical and hydraulic systems needed to work together for the boat to stay on its foils. The defenders of the Auld Mug worked in simulations as their first 75-foot foiling monohull was being built, but didn't waste any time in putting it through its paces once the vessel was launched.