America's Cup: Ben Ainslie reveals trip to spy on Team New Zealand's Te Aihe

Sir Ben Ainslie reveals a secret trip he made to New Zealand. Photo / Getty

Ineos Team UK skipper Ben Ainslie has revealed a reconnaissance trip he made to New Zealand late last year to scope out Emirates Team New Zealand's Te Aihe.

Team New Zealand launched Te Aihe last September to begin testing ahead of the opening America's Cup World Series regatta set for April.

As the first of the five syndicates to launch a full-scale model, Team New Zealand gauged plenty of attention from their opponents.

In an interview with Yachting World, four-time Olympic Gold medalist Ainslie admitted he had visited New Zealand shores to see Te Aihe for himself.

Sir Ben Ainslie onboard INEOS Team UK. Photo / Getty

"I went down to New Zealand and witnessed the Kiwis sailing in the early days", he said in the Road to the America's Cup podcast.

"The Kiwi boat has a bustle to help the boat to induce foiling in its acceleration phase. It is a very strong boat in that respect.

"They have also incorporated the weight of the bulb [carried by all the other teams] into the surface area of their wings.

"The Italians also have a bustle, but it is a more aggressive boat than the New Zealand boat. The Italians have been very creative, and I like a lot of the ideas on Luna Rossa.

"They have pushed the boundaries on creativity which is cool to see."

Emirates Team New Zealand's Te Aihe. Photo / Photosport

Ainslie's not the first to visit Auckland on "spying" duties.

Luna Rossa sailor Jacopo Plazzi was pictured getting some snaps at Te Aihe's launch in Auckland last September.

Plazzi insisted it was common practice in the sailing world.

"It's part of the game," he told 1 NEWS.

"There's a bunch of guys from all the teams going around the world to watch each other. We had the guys from Team New Zealand coming to Cagliari, some other people from the Americans.

"Spying is a big word for this just having a look at the first AC75 in the water."

Teams will get their first shot at racing head-to-head on the water in Cagliari this April.

The world series regattas continue in Portsmouth, England and Auckland.

The first three days of the regatta will consist of a round-robin competition, with all four teams scheduled to race each other twice.

Race winners will score one point and losers, zero. On the final day, the bottom two teams will face off for third and fourth while the top race in a first-to-two-points final.