Heller Amerigo Vespucci 1:150 Scale
Today based in Genoa, the Amerigo Vespucci training ship was built and equipped by the Royal Shipyards of Castellamare di Stabia (Naples). The author of the project was Lieutenant-Colonel Francesco Rontudi of the Italian Naval Engineering Corps. Work began on 12 May 1930 and it was launched on 22 February 1931. After the war, eight times, from 1958 to 2016, the yacht underwent numerous modernisation modifications. Rigged as a frigate, the Amerigo Vespucci is equipped with two diesel engines coupled to two electric propulsion generators developing 3,000 hp. Four diesel alternators provide the electrical power. Since its launch in 1931, the Amerigo Vespucci has always been used for military and naval training of officer cadets at the Livorno Naval Academy and pilot cadets of the Italian Navy‘s military crew corps. From 1933 to 1955 he made several crossings to the United States, Central America, Brazil and Argentina, and there were numerous cruises of the sailing school ship from the North Sea to the eastern coasts of the Atlantic. Since the mid-1980s, the Amerigo Vespucci has regularly participated in “Tall Ships’ Races” and various gatherings in Europe and France.
