Thanks to regular drills conducted onboard, the crew handled the situation calmly, efficiently and in a professional manner, and we commend them for doing a fantastic job!

Upon contact with MRCC Valencia, a rescue helicopter and boat promptly arrived on-scene, collecting the refugees and ensuring everyone’s safety.  

Manta Maritime strives to maintain the highest level of safety standards on board our yachts. We value the importance of conducting frequent drills & exercises, internal audits and facilitating regular crew training.

Fair winds and following seas.

The yacht is now enjoying a cold but hopefully bright stay in London. As one of the biggest superyachts to enter the West India Docks we’re sure it’ll attract a fair amount of attention over the next few weeks.

Elvis – Elvis always seems to be “All shook up”. His quiff continues to grow; however, he struggles to remain smart! He walks with pride and is a firm believer that “You’ve got to follow that dream, wherever that dream may lead”
Rocky – As the head of the raft Rocky has a powerful bravado to protect and empower his fellow ducks. The damage to his beak identifies his determination to ensure no one in his raft is harmed. “Every champion was once a contender who refused to give up”

Speckles – With a speckled throat, Speckles stands out from the crowd. She is patient and is always considerate of her peers, especially when it comes to feeding time.

Pe-King – As the smallest member of the raft, Pe-King takes on the role of leading the raft throughout the day. What he lacks in stature he makes up in voice. His quacks can be heard upriver.

Crispy – With a tough exterior Crispy is Rocky’s right-hand man. He supports and protects. Crispy is also known for his healthy appetite and is not afraid to get stuck in at the mercy of others.

Jaffa – As the only one who has orange feet, she is easily identifiable. She has a curious nature and will always be at the back of the raft as she explores all areas of the river Hamble.

The ducks are rarely seen alone and take pride in their raft. As social and outgoing animals they thrive off each other’s company. The ducks spend their days looking for food in the grass but are truly spoilt by the Manta team and local businesses here at Botley Mill.

As the seasons change and they go in and out of nesting the team are keen to welcome some new additions in the not-so-distant future.

Anthony’s virtual audience have been studying The Titanic at school and were unable to make any visits to local maritime museums due to the lockdown restrictions. He was happy to add some real-life context to their learning and it made a nice change from speaking at industry forums. 

The children got an insight into Archimedes’ eureka moment in the bath, the opposing forces of buoyancy and weight, and of course the importance of floating the right way up! Anthony also managed to summarised the maritime regulations for them then fielded some excellent questions. 

It was great to be met with such enthusiasm by the children and teachers. And who knows, a future naval architect or two may have been inspired…

Manta now has DoCs issued by Bermuda, Cayman Islands and Marshall Islands, but we welcome yachts of any size and flag to our fleet!

Nestling along the River Hamble, Manta Maritime’s picturesque home is in the Grade II-listed former flour mill. Built in 1750, incredibly the milling tradition has been evident on this site hundreds of years earlier, and is even mentioned in The Doomsday Book.

Perhaps it’s not surprising therefore, that modernising our office space around such notable industrial heritage took a considered approach. However, we are spectacularly proud of the results and now have a larger workspace which, whilst contemporary, is sensitive to its historic surroundings.

In celebration of Manta Maritime’s 10 year anniversary directors Anthony Gradwell and Ken Appleby held a fabulous party at Heston Blumenthal’s world renowned Fat Duck restaurant. Whilst Heston wasn’t there in person, he was very much present in each of the 16 courses of molecular gastronomy. Highlights included cocktails prepared in liquid nitrogen, hot and cold rabbit tea, and after-dinner treats dispensed from a £150,000 model sweetshop.

Since its humble beginning in March 2006, Manta has diversified from solely providing maritime regulatory advice to the large yachting industry, to a full range of management and consulting services including surveying, new-building supervision, and the full management of large yachts and passenger ships.

Current non-management projects include providing technical superintendency services to a 134m passenger yacht, and new-build support to a 116m passenger yacht.

I am very proud of what Manta has achieved and how we’ve developed over the first 10 years, but now the real work begins – building our fleet of managed yachts, and expanding our products and services. Here’s to another 10 years of challenges and growth!
Anthony Gradwell (Managing Director)