If it weren’t for Covid-19, Sven Timmann would be sailing the relatively calm inland waters of the Netherlands with groups of schoolchildren, businesspeople and families. Instead, his ship, the Ambiance – a 112-year-old clipper with three masts and six sails – has been docked since October, and there is a good chance it will never sail again.
A sturdy, bearded man with an anchor tattoo who bought the 39-metre Ambiance after moving to the Netherlands from Germany to attend nautical college, Timmann has already seen a 90% loss of revenue this season. He expects to be bankrupt by the end of the year. “The ship has sailed through wars and storms,” he says. “How can it be that a tiny virus now threatens the entire fleet?”
