Tim Jackett and Bob Johnson collaborate on a performance sloop that redefines the American-style, family cruising boat.
For the past 30 years, you could not sail into a harbor anywhere in North America, and most of the rest of the world, too, without seeing a cruising boat built by either Tartan or Island Packet. These two American brands, with Catalina and a few others, set the gold standard for American-designed and built cruising boats with more than 5000 cruising boats built between them.
So it is an interesting twist that the designers who made those brands so famous joined together to create an entirely new line of performance cruising boats under the Blue Jacket banner. Bob Johnson, founder and chief designer at Island Packet, and Tim Jackett, designer and former CEO of Tartan-C&C, started with a blank sheet of paper and set out to build a true performance cruiser that will sail extremely well and will be an elegant cruising yacht for discerning owners who demand both high quality and a distinct pedigree. Built by the craftsmen at Island Packet, the Blue Jacket 40 looks like the start of a new American tradition. Read More
