A 2020 three-cabin Aquila 44 in Fort Lauderdale with an all-weather lower helm, upgraded 320hp Volvos and a full-beam owner's suite — walked through underway.
Most Aquila 44s leave the factory with a tidy run of cabinet space where the inside helm could be. This one didn’t. Dickie Chickens, a 2020 three-cabin example lying in Fort Lauderdale, was ordered new with the rare lower helm station — and as broker Staley Weidman points out in his walkthrough, it isn’t a token secondary console. Every control lives there.
An all-weather helm, fully equipped
Sitting at the inside station, Weidman runs through what’s at hand: bow thruster, autopilot, multifunction display, chart plotter, radar, full engine vessel management display, engine controls, fire suppression, VHF and electronic throttles. There are even windshield wipers on the salon glass. For anyone planning shoulder-season passages or long-range cruising, the ability to drive from air conditioning or heat, with visibility all around, is a genuinely different ownership experience than a flybridge-only 44. Every display and control is duplicated up top, where a Volvo Penta engine display, Raymarine HybridTouch chart plotter and radar, Raymarine VHF, autopilot, searchlight and Fusion audio are laid out under the hardtop bimini.
Part of the video is shot underway — unusual for a walkthrough — specifically to make a point about noise. With both engines and the generator running at roughly eight knots off Fort Lauderdale, the salon registers as little more than a low hum.
Upgraded power and equipment
The boat carries the upgraded 320-horsepower Volvo Penta D4s, with what Weidman describes as extremely low engine and generator hours. The engine compartments are notably walk-around friendly: strainers, fuel filters, seacocks and dipsticks are all within reach, with a Kohler generator in a soundproof enclosure behind, and air conditioning and watermaker units on the opposite side. Equipment includes a bow thruster, watermaker, solar panels on the flybridge, satellite TV, washer-dryer, an electric barbecue up top, CZone digital switching, AIS and a large Highfield 360 tender with a center console steering station, launched via a stern crane and wired remote.
Living space for three, dining for eight
The forward owner’s cabin — behind a privacy pocket door — is full beam, nearly 20 feet across, which Weidman rightly calls unusual on a 44-foot catamaran. There’s an island berth accessible from both sides, an office area with desk and storage, a 42-inch flat screen with soundbar, linen closet, washer and dryer, and a private head and separate shower. Aft, the port cabin is slightly the larger of the two, with its own closet housing a wine fridge; the starboard cabin is the smallest. Both aft cabins have televisions and generous shelving, and share the aft head and separate shower compartment.
The galley opens onto a bar for serving, with double sink, Kenyon induction cooktop with non-skid pad, microwave, drawer fridges with freezer below, and a raised salon settee whose table folds out to seat six. A concealed flat-screen lift — another factory upgrade — drops the TV flush into the counter. Counting the salon settee, the galley bar, the aft cockpit and the flybridge, there are four places to eat, with the cockpit and flybridge tables each set up for eight.
Where it sits in the market
The Aquila 44 trades thinly, which makes a well-optioned example worth a close look. YachtSite data shows the following:
| Metric | Figure |
|---|---|
| Sold, last 24 months | 4 |
| Median sold price | $625,000 |
| Median days to sell | ~240 |
| Active listings | 3 |
| Asking range | $725,000–$819,000 (median $765,000) |
Weidman’s view is straightforward: competitively priced, low hours, and equipped in ways the other 44s aren’t. The boat is in Fort Lauderdale — and so is he.