Diamonds Are Forever: John Staluppi’s Benetti Yacht

Diamonds Are Forever is a 61-metre custom Benetti superyacht launched in 2011 as hull FB253. The yacht was built for American entrepreneur and serial yacht owner John Staluppi, whose enthusiasm for James Bond inspired the name. Staluppi later sold the yacht, but the vessel continues to be known as Diamonds Are Forever.

This page restores the original MegaYachtGuy URL that attracted an external backlink from John Staluppi-related yacht pages. Where the original MegaYachtGuy article is no longer recoverable in full, this restored edition uses current public sources rather than inventing missing text.

From Benetti FB253 to Diamonds Are Forever

Benetti launched the yacht in Livorno in November 2011. The project’s official builder designation was FB253, but Staluppi chose the name Diamonds Are Forever as another entry in his sequence of yachts named after James Bond novels and films.

Contemporary reporting described the yacht as Staluppi’s largest yacht at the time. Benetti’s naval architecture underpins the vessel, while published design credits associate the exterior with Stefano Natucci and the interior with Evan K. Marshall.

Why the yacht is called Diamonds Are Forever

The name is a direct reference to Ian Fleming’s James Bond story and the 1971 film. Staluppi became known for applying Bond titles to a succession of yachts, including Goldfinger, Octopussy, The World Is Not Enough, Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace and later projects.

The Bond connection was not subtle at launch: contemporary coverage described a Bond-themed christening, complete with the film’s theme music, an Aston Martin and a staged action sequence against the yacht as a backdrop.

Design focused on luxury charter

Diamonds Are Forever marked a clear shift from the ultra-fast yachts that made Staluppi famous earlier in his yachting career. Instead of chasing headline speed, the 61-metre Benetti emphasized volume, guest comfort and charter usability.

The yacht was designed for 12 guests in six cabins, including two panoramic master suites. A central glass elevator serves multiple decks, and the upper arrangement includes a private panoramic deck high above the water. Contemporary sources also described generous exterior areas, a full-beam sky lounge and touch-and-go helicopter capability on the aft sun deck.

John Staluppi and the Bond-yacht tradition

John Staluppi built his business career in the automobile industry and became equally well known in yachting for commissioning a series of ambitious yachts. His earlier projects often pushed performance, while later yachts moved toward luxury, charter and larger-volume platforms.

Performance and range

Published specifications place maximum speed around 16 knots, with long-range cruising capability of about 4,800 nautical miles at 12 knots. Twin Caterpillar 3512-series diesels power the full-displacement steel hull.

This was a different philosophy from Staluppi’s earlier high-speed projects: more emphasis on comfortable transoceanic operation, guest volume and charter service than outright speed.

Diamonds Are Forever specifications