No, Jeff Bezos Didn’t Buy the World’s Largest Charter Superyacht

Jeff Bezos buys the world’s largest charter superyacht? If it sounds like a headline too good to be true, that’s because it is.

This weekend, rumors began to circulate online that the Amazon founder and CEO bought the 466-foot Flying Fox superyacht. This speculation kicked off after journalist Yasher Ali posted a photo of the yacht docked in Datça, Turkey, to his Twitter feed. In the since-deleted tweet, Ali referred to the Flying Fox as “Jeff Bezos’s new yacht.” The journalist told Insider that he tweeted about Bezos owning the boat after seeing an Instagram post by jewelry designer Loree Rodkin which suggested the boat belonged to the tech titan. (The caption has since been edited.)

But it appears none of that is true. A source with knowledge of the situation tells Robb Report that Bezos does not own the Flying Fox, nor has he ever been onboard it. (Insider also published a statement from Amazon denying that the billionaire owned the yacht.)

Bezos has been linked to the Flying Fox as a potential owner since German yacht maker Lürssen first began construction on the boat in 2017. The yacht has previously been reported to be worth a mind-boggling $400 million, which might explain why the world’s richest man, according to Bloomberg and Forbes, is constantly proffered as a possible owner.

The PYT-compliant luxury vessel has ample room for 22 guests in its 11 staterooms, which include a private master suite on the top deck with its own jacuzzi, and a number of VIP suites with private terraces and ensuite bathrooms. It also features a two-story saloon, a wooden fireplace, a movie theater with state-of-the-art A/V capabilities, a 39-foot swimming pool, beach club, a gym, a 13,000-square-foot spa and, in case all that wasn’t enough, not one but two helipads.

Of course, a man with Bezos’s means doesn’t have to buy the Flying Fox to spend some quality time aboard the superyacht.  As Robb Report pointed out in June, the boat is part of Monaco-based Imperial’s fleet of yachts, and it’s available for charter.