The yard building carbon cruising catamarans founded by Peter Johnstone, which became French in La Grande-Motte
Gunboat designs and builds high-performance carbon cruising catamarans from 62 to 80 feet. Founded in 2002 following a personal order from American Peter Johnstone, the yard is now based in La Grande-Motte (Hérault) after its acquisition in 2016 by the French Grand Large Yachting group.
From Cape Town to La Grande-Motte
The project began in 2002 when Peter Johnstone ordered a 62' catamaran from Morrelli & Melvin to sail with his family. The boat — named Tribe — was built in South Africa (Cape Town) and became Gunboat 62 hull #1. The concept (carbon cruising cat, heavy equipment centered around the center of gravity) took off, and Johnstone founded Gunboat to build more. Production moved from China to North Carolina (USA).
In late 2015, Gunboat went bankrupt. Grand Large Yachting acquired its assets in 2016, and Peter Johnstone left management. The yard was relocated to La Grande-Motte in a new 3,600 m² assembly workshop, specifically sized for carbon multihulls.
VPLP naval architecture, carbon construction
Under Grand Large Yachting, naval architecture shifted to VPLP Design. Hulls and structures are in carbon composite (prepreg over Nomex honeycomb core) with watertight crash boxes in each bow and buoyancy compartments in the hulls, coachroof, and platform — offshore safety designed for boats capable of exceeding true wind speed under certain points of sail.
