Flying Fifteen

BoatsFlying Fifteen

See her sail

The Flying Fifteen, on the water

The fleet's own footage — the truest look at how she really moves.

Is it for you?

Character

Where this design lands on the numbers a shopper trusts — read straight from her own ratios.

TrailerableBeam 2.13 m — inside the 2.55 m no-permit tow width across most of Europe, and the 2.59 m US and Canadian limit. About 329 kg of hull, so roughly 950 kg on a trailer: check that against your own towing rating.Ramp-launchableAbout 329 kg of hull, with a keel that raises or a draft shallow enough to float off a trailer — she can go back on the trailer at the ramp, not only into the water.Shoal draftDraws 0.76 m, board up where she has one — creeks, sandbars and thin anchorages most keels have to stay out of.

LivelySea-kindly

Her light displacement on a moderate beam gives 5 — a quick, lively motion that feels every wave.

Comfort ratio 5

CoastalBluewater

At 3.12 she sits above the 2.0 line — beamy for her weight, and happiest coastal.

Capsize screening 3.12

LightHeavy

96 — light for her waterline, so she is easily driven and quick to accelerate.

Displacement / length 96

EasygoingPowered-up

28.1 — a lot of sail for her weight; powered-up and eager, a real performer.

Sail area / displacement 28.1

TenderStiff

51% of her weight is ballast — very stiff, carrying full sail in a blow.

Ballast 51%

Light and lively — happiest day-sailing and coastal-hopping in settled weather.

Lighter than ~99% of boats her size on file
Draws less than ~84% of boats her size on file
Narrower than ~83% of boats her size on file

Compared with 563 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

What the fleet has seen

The Flying Fifteen, as the fleet has seen it

Derived from the videos the fleet has analysed of this model. ▶ marks open the moment aboard.

The Flying FIFTEEN is a 6.1-meter fractional sloop designed by Uffa Fox, first built in 1948, and still in production. It features a fin keel and displaces 328 kg.8:41 Fox designed the Flying FIFTEEN to incorporate planing hull principles into a keelboat.8:21 The model has undergone progressive modernization, with hull tolerances tightened from +/-25mm to +/-7mm.16:21 Boats with sail numbers below 2700 are designated as Classics and remain race-legal within the active international one-design class. Fleets race in Australia, Hong Kong, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the British Isles.

The living fleet

Sailed by the fleet

Where the fleet has filmed this boat.

Seen once across one channel of the fleet.

Basemap © Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

The record

Full specifications

The complete reference set — tap any figure to switch between metric and imperial.

Dimensions

Weights

Ballast / displacement

51.3%

Rig & sail area

Rig

Fractional Sloop

Ratios

SA / displacement

28.1

Displacement / length

95.9

Comfort ratio

5.1

Capsize screening

3.12

Hull speed

5.2 kn

Pounds / inch immersion

375

Hull

Hull type

Fin Keel

Construction

Wood

Production

Years built

First built 1948

Units built

4000

Designer

Uffa Fox

Builder

Various, Chippendale Boats

Boats like this, on the water

More boats like her, on the water

Comparable boats the fleet has on camera: same type, within a quarter of her length. Open the boat, or watch the video — a timestamp means she only appears in passing.

J Boats J/706.93 mSame hull family0.8 m longerA high-performance fractional sloop designed by Alan Johnstone, with over 1,100 units delivered for one-design racing

Anette Melsom Myhre successful in the shorthanded class.2:18 from SEILmagasinet

Pogo 26.50 mSame hull family0.4 m longerA 6.5-metre ultralight racer with a 37.87 sail-area-to-displacement ratio built for high-speed planing

Jonas Muro Gomes and the Mini Transat19:52 from Podcast Maré Sonora ®

J Boats Tillotson Pearson J/226.86 mSame hull family0.8 m longerA high-performance fractional sloop with a high sail-area-to-displacement ratio designed for competitive one-design racing

Sailing a J22 in Newport Beach, CA (July 2022)0:30 from keeldragger

Allegro (Westell)6.32 mSame hull family0.2 m longerA John Westell-designed fractional sloop with twin keels, built for performance and shoal water access since 1956

Sailing Stockholm's Archipelago: Two girls, One dog and a New Boat Adventure! Part 1 SMAS E40:30 from See me at sea

J J/77.04 mSame hull family0.9 m longerA 2024 fractional sloop with a shallow 1.16m draft and a high 23.55 sail-area-to-displacement ratio for responsive daysailing

J7: Finally an affordable sailboat0:49 from SEILmagasinet

Abbott Boats Inc. Yngling6.35 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA 6.35-metre fractional sloop that served as the Olympic class for women sailors from 2004 through 2008

Kristian Nergaard - most medals in 202410:10 from SEILmagasinet

The family

Related models

The designs closest to hers — usually the rest of the builder's range, sometimes the same hull sold under another name.

Foxcub 18A compact 18-foot masthead sloop with a fin keel, designed by Uffa Fox for stable, manageable coastal sailing International FJA lightweight 75-kilogram centerboard dinghy derived from the Flying Dutchman as a junior-level trainer since 1956 Javelin 14 (Fox)A 1960 Uffa Fox fractional sloop designed as a lightweight, high-performance centerboard dinghy Hobie FoxA Formula 20 fractional catamaran designed by Nils Bunkenburg for high-performance racing with a spinnaker

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