Venus has turned heads since she first splashed in 2012. She’s getting a whole lot of renewed attention thanks to a video shot earlier this month of her passing through the Simpson Bay Bridge in St. Maarten. It’s received nearly 120,000 views on YouTube as of this writing. And, it shows why the maneuver is akin to threading a needle.
To put things into perspective, let’s compare the dimensions of Venus to those of the drawbridge passage. Her beam is 38’7” (11.8 meters). The Simpson Bay Bridge opening is about 55 feet (16.75 meters) wide. Of course, that’s not to say a yacht of that beam can pass through. The operational authority for the Simpson Bay Bridge restricts access to yachts only a bit beamier than Venus, to allow good clearance on each side. That made for quite the superyacht squeeze.
Local newspapers reported that Venus had been visiting St. Maarten since early February. The video was shot on her day of departure by Brian Muston, who has used drones previously to film megayachts around the island nation. His camerawork for Venus is a bit shaky at first, but when he stabilizes the drone, the magic starts. Crewmembers moving about the bow of Venus look like ants from the aerial perspective. You can see one thruster, then the opposite one, activate to keep Venus safely within the span. Then watch as once she’s past the bridge, she’s practically shown up by a far-less-beamy sailing yacht.
As fascinating as the video is, Muston could face trouble for using his drone. The Simpson Bay Bridge is relatively close to the international airport and therefore the flight path of arriving and departing planes. The operator of everythingstmaarten.com reportedly notified the police and airport’s managing director about the video last weekend. The police inspector told the website, “We’ll further discuss with the Department of Civil Aviation.”
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The I-Squeeze!