Alpa, a key experience for Made in Italy sailing

In the cosrso of our explorations in the world of the Classic Boats, we have talked, and not a little, about many of the great shipyards that gave birth to some of the greatest hulls of the last century. From Dufour at Hallberg Rassy, from Baltic to X-Yachts and from Solaris (Se.Ri.Gi) to Cantiere del Pardo, we told hulls and stories about them. Yet, on closer inspection, another surely escapes notice, perhaps because it is lost today, perhaps out of habit… ALPA, a cornerstone of Italian (and other) boating. The signatory of exceptional hulls, such as the 9.50 and 12.70, as well as dinghies that have raised entire generations, Alpa was a relatively short-lived but fundamental experience, one of the great “enlightened” shipyards, the first, in Italy, to see the use of fiberglass applied. Born in 1956, this is its story.

ALPA Shipyards, the forerunners.

Fiberglass was a pivotal element in the development of recreational boating in forms approaching those of today. Wood and aluminum were the previous standard, with subsequent experimentation in the realms of exotic materials (Kevlar, carbon etc.) presenting itself only after the discovery of the “goodness” of this first. A fundamental material whose importance is to be found in a single concept: serial production. The application, as often, was born in a military context, during World War II, and from the shipbuilding experiences of this phase, it is then plane translated and experimented in every other sector. Alpa shipyards will be among the first to grasp its potential, going so far as to hire some of the most prominent architects of their time to sign hulls that are legendary today. Alpa would launch as many as 22,000 hulls, offering production that, in some ways, on the levels of efficiency and know-how, would be comparable to Henry Ford’s achievements in the automobile revolution.

ALPA, the origins

Danilo Cattadori is the key figure in this story. On the strength of a great passion for modeling, in the early 1950s he shifted this experience to the world of nautical construction, giving birth to a singular shipyard/person, CD, that is, Danilo Cattadori, the first wisp of what would become Alpa. But it was in 1956 that the turning point came, with the registration of the Alpa sole proprietorship in Fiesco-Offanengo, an acronym for Azienda Lavorazioni Plastiche Affini . We are in a period still regarded as one of pure experimentation with resin-based composites, and the shipyard immediately becomes one of its forerunners. The first production is focused on drifts, from which it derives immediate success.

His Flying Dutchman (designed by Cattadori, elaborated on the originals by Uus Van Essen and Conrad Gulcher 1951) immediately turn out to be among the best, winning Olympic Gold at the 1960 Naples Games. Fame immediately became international, and such were the shipyard’s participations in the Saloni. Cattadori, moreover, will also win a Compasso d’Oro for his FD.

So it is 1960 and, 4 years after its founding, the shipyard has some models from Cattadori’s previous experience in production ( the CD cabin cruisers under 9 meters) and two international classes, the Flying Dutchman and Flying Junior. But the 1960s would be the real breakthrough years.

Alpa, the turning point of the early 1960s

With the fame achieved and the know-how acquired on the fiberglass front, the 1960s are the yard’s great springboard. Cattadori, far-sighted, seizes the advantages of more important serial productions, and marries them admirably with projects signed by real stars of the industry. The attempt is clear, to launch into the world of cabin cruisers, opening up, however, to different market segments: on the one hand, the “small,” hulls under 9 meters but qualitatively capable of being valid week-enders; on the other hand, the “big” market, with challenging hulls of far greater size. Signed by Illingworth, the first two series were thus born: the Alpa A7 (1961; 7.0 m) and theAlpa A15 (1962; 14.7 m).

With theAlpa A7 you have a small hull designed for a less affluent audience, a compact, modest, but qualitatively refined hull complete with every comfort. The lines are marine, the slips not overly pronounced (7 m LOA x 5.75 m LWL), with a semi-long keel and masthead rig. Below deck, 4 berths, galley plan and toilet provide the necessities to extend one’s outings, making the small 7-meter boat an ideal hull for both novices and more seasoned sailors.

TheAlpa A15, on the other hand, is a hull that wants to offer more instead, being born as an Ocean Racer and, above all, as the largest GRP hull in Europe. It is a “gentleman’s” boat (as many as 6 will be produced). Long keel, starry hull, Yawl rig (with the mizzen behind the rudder shaft) and more important slips (14.7 m LOA x 10 m LWL), make her a marine and glamorous design for her time. Below deck, in addition to the inevitable (for that time) forward sailor’s cabin, it offers a second private double cabin and 3 more sleeping places in the dinette, otherwise used as a sitting area. There is no shortage of the inevitable galley, chartroom and toilet. The two hulls make up the first mature production and will serve as a springboard for the larger production of the end of the decade.

Late 1960s cults

The yard’s production of excellence comes in the late 1960s. By this stage the design is mature, the numbers are there and the interest too. The yard thus looks to dimensions appreciable to a large public and more balanced than the previous extremes, thus giving birth to two hulls capable of consecrating the brand for canons that, against all odds, will be those that still populate its memory today: quality and attention to detail. Thus were born, in 1967, two new Illingworth designs, theAlpa A9 and theAlpa 8.25. The 9.09-meter-longAlpa A9 is a hull that looks to relatively classic styles, with a semi-long keel, high deckhouse, and fully 1960s profiles. It offers capacious volumes for the standard and lends itself well to cruising use. It is theAlpa 8.25, however, that is the innovator here, starting with the more modern water lines, with fin keel and separate rudder, of course, with skeg. This is also the most successful hull of the two, with production stopped only in 1983, unlike the A9, which will stop production as early as 1970.

1968 would then see the introduction of the small Alpa 6.7, the updated version of theAlpa A7, if you will, but this time by a new name, a big name: Van de Stadt. Accompanying it, a great Illingworth success, the Maica, reproduced for Alpa with some improvements by the same designer and renamed the Alpa A11, also known as the Alpa Maica. Two undoubtedly successful hulls, destined, however, to be eclipsed by the shipyard’s next introduction, perhaps the absolute pinnacle of its production.

In 1969, in fact, Alpa presented a new design signed by Sparkman & Stephens. It is a modern sloop born for the creation of a small series intended for a small core of owners looking for a boat with which they can both race and fully enjoy the purest sailing. It is theAlpa 12.70, the Italian Swan 43, a real “gem.” In fact, the 12.70 is from the outset among the best Sparkman & Stephens designs of the period and is clogged by Alpa with then still unprecedented care and quality. At 12.65 meters long (9.12 m LWL), strong with important leaps and very elegant lines, she was produced in just 15 examples, long or short deckhouse (the only four examples with short deckhouse are a small masterpiece of aesthetics) soon proving to be not only a classy hull, but also a high-performance one to say the least. A perfect capstone for the end of the decade. It is, however, also the birth of problems for Alpa; indeed, the design turns out to be excellent, but the commercial operation behind it is unfortunate, causing the foundations to falter.

The 1970s

The 1970s opened immediately with a second gem of a boat. It is the “little” Alpa 9.50, Cattadori’s own design, which reworks the lines of the 12.70 on a smaller size, creating a boat designed for use as a small cruiser. Success was not lacking, the 9.50 is agile, compact and pleasing, elegant as few other 9 meters knew how to be at that time. At the same time, with 71 the shipyard’s economic problems deepen and, from a sole proprietorship, Alpa becomes a corporation. It is at this time that Cattadori gives up his shares and retires from the business.

With 1972, consistently, the Shipyard thus seeks a new direction, which seems to find its place under the S&S sign. The Alpa 36MS (1972) and Alpa 42 (1973), 11.22 and 12 meters overall, respectively, were born. The design and lines, however, are very different from anything that had come before. Indeed, the choice of the new shipyard management looks to the bluewater world, and, between high freeboards and central cockpits, the two new hulls fully demonstrate this. In parallel, 1974 also brings two smaller hulls, theAlpa 7.4 (7.4 m) and theAlpa A8 (8.0 m), followed by theA27 (8.17 m) and theA19 (5.7 m).

To flank this recent fleet of “small” hulls and bluewater, however, 1975 will bring a third classic from the shipyard: it is theAlpa 11.50, a hull with classic, clean lines, still accentuated slender lines, and a 1960s-style deckhouse. An apparent “return to order,” perhaps, that will meet with great approval, but fails, however, to cast a new line. Indeed, in 1967 came another attempt toward the bluewater world, theAlpa 38, another S&S, this time 11.38 meters long and available with both sloop and ketch rigs.

The decline

Deprived of Cattadori, set on this new direction, however, Alpa failed to reconsolidate and, by the late 1970s, the yard closed its doors. Not before launching, however, one last hull, a 44-unit success story. It is Sparkman & Stephens’Alpa A34, a boat now modern, fully a child of her time and with pleasing lines. The slips are shorter, the drift fin more pronounced, and the maximum beam is abundant, central. Aesthetically, she is markedly different from all previous production, a swan song perhaps, a glimmer in what, perhaps, could have been the 1980s Alpa look. Overall, in spite of its “short” course, however, Alpa was a very important reality for Italian shipbuilding, not only for those 3 or 4 big cults that it was able to leave behind, but perhaps more for the qualitative and innovative approach it was able to give, creating a legacy so important that the subsequent experiences of the belpaese had, perhaps, that extra gear that they later knew how to have.

Three “tidbits” about Classic Boats

• Want to learn more about the world of Classic Boats (1967-1998), the iconic boats of the period, the legendary designers, the stories and races of the “golden age” of sailing? Check out our section dedicated to Classic Boats!
• Do you have a Classic Boat to sell? Put it (for free) on our classifieds market!
• Do you have a Classic Boat? Participate in the SAIL CUP with your boat. There is a special ranking for you! Find out which stage is right for you!

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