TOP 10 boats and aircraft from 2013

TOP 10 boats and aircraft from 2013

if 2013 was any indication of how fast technology has evolved in both air and water-based transportation sectors, 2014 has some big shoes to fill. from flying cars approved for public flights, the world’s first solar airplane flight voyage across the USA, to the hydroptere sailboat setting transpacific speed records, designboom reviews the TOP 10 big stories in boats and aircraft news from 2013.

image © solar impulse – j. revillard

piloted by bertrand piccard, the 2013 across america mission was concluded successfully in the ‘solar impulse hb sia‘ solar powered aircraft on saturday may 4th, 2013. kicking off the ‘clean generation’ initiative, the airplane safely crossed the continental united states in five stopovers, raising awareness about the potential of clean technologies.

image © anthony collins

in 2012, ‘planetsolar‘, the fully solar-powered catamaran designed by new zealander craig loomes, took a trip around the world energized exclusively by rays from the sun. earlier this summer, the ship continued its itinerary by taking part in a campaign to clean up european waters, a project initiated by the waste free oceans foundation that aims to significantly reduce the floating litter in european waters by 2020.

image courtesy e-volo

the e-volo VC200 has become the first electric helicopter to make a successful maiden flight, with multiple flights lasting several minutes and reaching heights of nearly 22 meters high. together with 18-rotor blades and a disassemblable architectural system, the volocopter has been designed to host two passengers for distances of up to 100km and a flight altitude of up to 6500 ft.

image © francis demange

combining advanced technology and aeronautical engineering, the ‘hydroptere’ rises above the surface from buoyant thrust caused by the water’s dynamic lift. the sailboat floats five meters over the sea using ‘marine wings’ or foils, which enables the vessel to travel from 20 to 45 knots (37 to 83 km/h) in 10 seconds with reduced drag. because the foils must resist pressures twice as high as those exerted on the wings of a jet fighter, the sailboat uses composite materials for its main construction; such as carbon fibers impregnated with epoxy and associated with titanium parts.

terrafugia transition flying car conducts first public flights

image © terrafugia

flown and driven by phil meteer, chief test pilot and flight test coordinator, the ‘terrafugia transition‘ flying car performed its first public demonstrations in front of a crowd at the 2013 EAA airventure oshkosh. several 20 minute demonstrations included flight maneuvers, converting from airplane to car and driving along the flight line. the two-seater, fixed wing street legal airplane has the capacity to achieve a maximum speed of 115mph (185 km/h) with a cruise speed of 105mph (172 km/h).

image courtesy zaha hadid architects

zaha hadid has teamed up with hamburg-based shipbuilders blohm + voss to design a superyacht. the concept is based on the sculptural form of a master prototype for a 128m yacht–presented at an exhibition of the architect’s work at the david gill galleries in london–and is accompanied by ‘the unique circle yachts’, a family of five 90m vessels also designed by hadid.

image courtesy world view

for $75,000 USD, tuscon-based world view enterprises can bring you 30 km (18.6 miles) above the earth’s surface in a capsule lifted via high-altitude balloon for a suborbital spaceflight. similar to virgin galactic’s ‘SpaceShipOne’, the ride by london-based transportation designers priestmangoode to offer spectacular views of the curvature of our plant for a fraction of the cost.

image courtesy ludovica + roberto palomba

designed by milan-based palomba serafini associati architecture studio, the 65 meter long ‘jolly roger mega-yacht’ possesses a dynamic and elegant look with decks supported by a system of ‘equipped ribs’ which lighten the volume and allow the use of large windows. the conception takes from the idea of a ‘high-powered car of the sea’ – automotive DNA that seen within the structures, which release the decks from visual obstruction by giving back the relation with nature and the ocean.

amazon’s next generation research and development lab have been hard at work conceptualizing the future of deliveries with ‘prime air’. the system, which aims to have packages into customers’ hands in 30 minutes or less using unmanned drones, will be ready to enter commercial operation as early as 2015.

image courtesy orion shuttleworth

‘adastra’ is a 42.5m power trimaran which was conceived for a couple (anto and elaine marden) for long range cruising. the superyacht uses a trimaran shape that allows it to have multiple hulls. this is the second largest of its kind and can be controlled from a distance with an iPad. it’s aerodynamics and hydrodynamics were carefully considered by john shuttleworth yacht designs who have drafted a  streamlined exterior body whose three hulls are slender in form.

see designboom’s other big stories of 2013 here.