HISTORICAL
DOCUMENTS.

Published in 1985, this paper documents the development of the Cousteau–Pechiney wind-propulsion program while the Turbosail project itself was still unfolding.

It records the progression from wind-tunnel research to the full-scale experimental installation aboard Moulin à Vent, including trials at Étang de Berre and in the Mediterranean, followed by the 1983 transatlantic experiment.

This is the scientific record closest to the original development of the system.

Where the earlier technical paper documents the development of the Turbosail, this record shows what happened after the experimental phase.

Alcyone carried the technology into operational service, combining twin diesel engines with two Turbosails and serving as a platform for exploration, science and filmmaking around the world.

The document describes Alcyone’s propulsion system, hull configuration and extensive expedition history, and reports approximately one-third fuel savings from the combined propulsion system.

Presented by Bureau Mauric naval architect Jean-Charles Nahon and Alcyone’s first captain Bernard Deguy, this later technical retrospective traces the development of the Turbosail from its experimental origins to Alcyone.

Of particular importance to the MÀV archive, the presentation explicitly identifies Moulin à Vent as the prototype Turbosail vessel and documents her conversion into the experimental platform used for the technology’s development.

It records the 1982 Turbosail installation, testing at Étang de Berre near Marseille and the results achieved aboard the vessel before the program evolved into the ocean-going Alcyone.

Unlike the original 1985 scientific paper, this document looks backward at the program with the benefit of decades of operational experience.