Branson Debuts New Submarine

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed)
Jan 30th 2010 at 8:01PM

You'd think Richard Branson might be busy conquering space but he's got plans to explore the sea as well. His Virgin Limited Edition has unveiled the Necker Nymph, a DeepFlight three-person aero submarine. The craft was built by Graham Hawkes, of Hawkes Ocean Technologies. The open cockpit winged sub is bit like an underwater airplane. Unlike conventional subs which use ballast to sink, the Necker Nymph (named after Branson's Necker Island) uses downward 'lift' perhaps a bit similar to the way an airplane uses its wings to sustain loft. The Nymph is available to those staying on Necker Island or chartering the 105-foot catamaran Necker Belle. Dives can last up to two hours. Guests will be trained/accompanied by a certified Necker Nymph pilot. It was was designed specifically for Necker Belle, but can also be launched from shore. When taking Necker Belle for 7-nights' exclusive hire, the sub is available at a weekly rate of $25,000.

[via Engadget]

Tags: NeckarNymph, necker island, necker nymph, NeckerIsland, NeckerNymph, richard branson, RichardBranson

Filed under: Yachts & Sailing, Wings

Subscribe to these comments

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

DJ Feb 1st 2010 8:57AM

Open Cockpit and on board scuba regualtor and O2? For all you rich folks out there who think this pretty cool craft is your ticket to crusing down to the Titanic to take a peek...think again. The best depth for this craft to crusie at would be at no more than 33Ft because deeper than that you then start getting into issues for the occupants related to decompression. You want the stuff that goes deep without those issues then look at sites like Seaimagine.com.

Gil Feb 1st 2010 8:09PM

This guy is big on hype and short on technology. I wouldn't feel safe going into the ocean or to the moon with his stuff. I always get the impression he's playing a shell game.