Speed. Comfort. Safety.** Latest News: The SeaPhantom featured on the April edition of ESPN's Pleasure Boater. ** Very high speed at sea is now practical, comfortable and fuel-efficient. Aided by a lifting-body airfoil, Maritime Flight Dynamics' SeaPhantom lifts out of the water to fly just above the wave crests, supported by shock dampening foils which act as a fully-functioning suspension system. While her propeller remains in the water, the body of the SeaPhantom is carried above the sea surface in ground effect. This reduces hydrodynamic drag radically, thus requiring less power and using a fraction of the fuel consumption of conventional fast boats.
Maritime Flight Dynamics' ground-breaking work has been recognised by the International Academy of Science, who nominated the SeaPhantom last year for their Outstanding Technology of the Year award, describing her as "an innovative, highly efficient watercraft -- a crossbreed between a powerboat and an airplane." Many high-performance boats can travel at triple-digit speeds over the water, but our objective is to make this kind of speed practical, safe, comfortable and economic - and in doing so make maritime transport a viable alternative to our crowded skies and highways.
Imagine: direct travel, city centre to city centre, from one waterfront downtown to another, faster than the taxi ride to and from your local airport. Imagine rendering the 'Blue Highways' vision of many municipalities a reality. Imagine creating one of the ocean's most advanced power craft concepts to date. Imagine no longer: the SeaPhantom made her public debut at the Festivals of Speed in St. Petersburg, Florida on 29th March 2008. The SeaPhantom is here... |
