Virgin Necker Nymph underwater plane announced
Virgin Limited Edition has launched a new underwater plane, the Necker Nymph, that will allow guests to dive down to depths of 130 feet, in Richard Branson’s Necker Island, in the Caribbean. The Necker Nymph is a aero-submersible designed by Hawkes Ocean Technologies based on its Deep Flight submersibles. The prototype submersible is made of carbon fiber and was built at a cost of US $664,000.
Photo: Virgin Necker Nymph underwater plane via Daily Mail
The Necker Nymph can board one pilot and two passengers on its underwater flight. Virgin has said that the Necker Nymph uses downward pressure on its wings to fly through the water for up to two hours at a time, unlike other submersibles that use ballast for passengers.
The hydrobatic underwater plane, that is operated using a joystick, can glide on the water’s surface like an aeroplane on a runway, and underwater over reefs, and even do dolphin like flips.
The Necker Nymph has an open cockpit like a plane as you can see from the photos on this page. It allows passengers to get panoramic views while it glides and banks underwater.
Virgin claims that the Necker Nymph underwater plane does not have an adverse effects on the environment. “Its positive buoyancy prevents the sub from landing on a reef, and its low light and noise emissions ensure the fragile ocean ecosystems remain undisturbed,” the company has said.
Guests will have to follow standard SCUBA procedures and will be trained by a certified Necker Nymph pilot.
The Necker Nymph is available only for those who rent Necker Belle, Virgin’s 105-foot luxury catamaran, while staying on Necker Island.
Guests who choose to exclusivey hire Necker Belle for 7-nights will be charged a weekly rate of US$ 25,000 for using the Necker Nymph. This is over and above Necker Belle’s weekly rate of US$88,000.
The Necker Nymph will be delivered on February 20, 2010.
Hawkes Ocean Technologies is working on a model that that will be able to plumb depths of up to 35,000 feet or 10,700 meters, underwater.
Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Limited Edition offers luxury retreats, such as Necker Island, Ulusaba Private Game Reserve (South Africa), Sa Terra Rotja in Mallorca (Spanish island), The Roof Gardens and Babylon Restaurant in London, Kasbah Tamadot in Morocco (northern Africa), and The Lodge in Verbier (southwestern Switzerland).
Richard Branson is one of the most prominent entrepreneurs in modern history, with airlines, a space travel company Virgin Galactic, amphibious cars and his fingers in a whole lot of pies!