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For $1.5M, DeepFlight Dragon Is an "Aircraft for the Water"
Zothecula writes No one with red blood in their veins buys a sports car and hands the keys to a chauffeur, so one of the barriers to truly personal submarining has long been the need for a trained pilot, not to mention the massive logistics involved in transporting, garaging and launching the underwater craft ... until now. Pioneering underwater aviation company DeepFlight is set to show an entirely new type of personal submarine at the 2014 Monaco Yacht Show next week, launching the personal submarine era with a submersible that's reportedly so easy to pilot that it's likely to create a new niche in the tourism and rental market.
One single drug run^h^h^h^hdive and the thing has paid for itself.
"Underwater aviation" ... stop corrupting language please.
With a name like DeepFlight and phrases such as "underwater aviation" I really expected a flying sub, you know, like in X-COM:TftD. Unfortunately, it seems that is not the case.
If not having to learn a lot about one of the most dangerous environments on this planet is meant to attract customers, then this is obviously going to end badly.
Going too deep and particularly up too fast will get you killed. Going underwater is dangerous. More so than being up in the air where the only risk is basically hitting the ground.
Non-Linux Penguins ?
The idea of a "personal submarine", IMHO, should be more along the lines of this kind of thing. Just build it yourself !
Maybe we deserve this world ?
I remember reading about the prototype for these subs 20 years ago. The idea then was a ceramic hull that could run straight up from the bottom of the Marianas Trench to the surface at full speed, without any need to depressurize.
Deep Flight It seems my memory is a little fuzzy. The prototype was capable of 12 knots and could ascend at 650 ft/min, but was only good to 3300 feet. I do remember they were having trouble finding a sponsor for the full depth model.
if you have red oxygenated blood in your veins...
The subs can surface as quickly as they want. The problem is the submariners aren't in a pressurized compartment so they can't surface all that fast.
I predict that these will sell poorly because the people who can afford them want comfort, and room to fuck their secretary/mistress.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Must be artist's impressions rather than actual design drawings. I can't imagine any subs travel with a 30 degree nose-up angle very quickly or efficiently.
Get back to me when they can supercavitate.
This is such a ridiculous sentence, I couldn't get past it to read the rest. First of all, veinal blood is really dark, not red. But most telling is that the writer assumes people like cars, want to drive cars, and can drive cars. I don't like them, I don't drive, and I don't own one. If I was to ever buy one, I would have someone else drive me. So according to this un-enlightened individual, I don't exist.
If he explores all forms and substances Straight homeward to their symbol-essences; He shall not die.
Wataircraft.
Should invading one's peaceful neighbours be opposed, or rewarded with trade deals?
A tourist with 30 minutes of training piloting a sub near coral reefs is a bad idea, the pilots will be looking at all the neat things and not paying attention. Depending on how powerful the currents are they could get swept out and run out of fuel fighting the current. These things are far from idiot proof and you should expect drunk or stoned college students on spring break to be using them. It's a great idea until you realize you are giving dumb-asses a $1.5 million dollar vehicle to drive through priceless and breathtaking wildlife sanctuaries, while we are at it let's start renting out Bugatti Veyrons to drive through the Louvre.
Knowledge = Power
P= W/t
t=Money
Money = Work/Knowledge so the less you know the more you make
Misread title as ...is an Anti-Aircraft for the Water
If I read TFA correctly, this only stays submerged because the quad fans (ok, screws) are madly driving water vertically. Somehow I don't see this as enhancing the view, especially if one gets near the ocean floor and significant sand/sediment is stirred up.
https://app.box.com/WitthoftResume Code: https://github.com/cellocgw
So why would we want to give these snobs more mindshare than we have to?
Look at the following points...
Fore-planes - they are curved and cannot act in an 'aerodynamic' manner (wings create lift by causing air to reduce in pressure as the air moves in a longer path over the wing than under it,) so they are really just flow directors, and the curves will create permanent turbulence and disrupt flow behind them - the forward vertical thrusters.
Forward vertical thrusters - turbulent flow will create beta on the blades (uneven flow vectors to different blades) destroying efficiency. The fenestration/cowl that surrounds the thrusters will cause turbulence also.
Forward hull - the hull immediately around the area of the forward thrusters is voluminous and bluff to the flow of water when under way. Turbulence and drag will ensue, and this will run toward the stern gear - thrusters, aft planes, pusher thrusters and elevator.
Stern vertical thrusters - similar flow conditions will exist for these units as they exist for the forward units.
Pusher thrusters - will receive all turbulence created by gear that is forward of their position, and reduce efficiency accordingly.
Elevator - single piece curved flow director, similar to the fore-planes in intended down-thrust effect. Same problems of turbulence and drag. Potential for anti-asynchronous oscillation from turbulence caused by all equipment forward of its position.
I saw the previous version of this craft, the Super Falcon, when it came for a demonstration in Jordan in April 2011, and was unimpressed with what I saw. This concept version is not an improvement. They should get proper designers to work on it, not people that just happened to see an aircraft, or read a few pages of Wikipedia.
Homeland security is not going to allow us to have personal submarines.