At the Monaco yacht expo last week, one of the attention grabbers was Graham Hawkes’s DeepFlight Super Falcon two-man submarine. What makes the craft interesting for pilots is the control method. The Super Falcon is buoyant, and relies on forward motion and negative “lift” from its 8.8-foot wingspan to keep it from rising to the surface. In effect, it’s like an upside-down airplane and can power its way as deep as 1,600 feet below the surface.
The concept is catching on among wealthy adventurers who may be tiring of their yachts and airplanes. Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz bought one of Hawkes’s Super Falcons last month. Before that, venture capitalist Thomas Perkins also took the plunge. He once owned the world’s largest yacht, but has apparently grown bored of plying the seven seas from the surface alone. Sir Richard Branson is another of Hawkes’s customers. For those not fully committed, Super Falcons are available for charter at $10,000 per day.
