Flying Ships on the Aegean

I got this in my email and were left staring at the screen gob smacked.

Flying ships taking people to the Greek islands?

Boats flying 12 meters above the sea, at speeds approaching 200kph are expected to appear in the Greek seas in the year 2008.

Hoverwings are the next revolution in sea travel! Piraeus to Crete in 1hour30 minutes. (It currently takes anything between 8 and 12hours, depending on the ship).

These type of vessels offer the marine transport with air travel features. They are neither planes or hydroplanes. They are called WIG's due to the Wing In Ground technology which they are based on.

Built using high pressure resistant, aerospace materials can carry 80 passengers, at high speeds (up to 112 knots), virtually unaffected by waves, even at 8 Beaufort scale seas, with a range of 800km.

They have low cost operation and maintenance, and do not require special harbour installations since they have foldable wigs.

The first three such crafts, will be built in Hamburg - Germany in the next years, by Hoverwing GMBH, they will carry German flag and crew, and the first is expected in Greece by the end of 2008.



The cost to the passengers is not expected to be higher than the current fares.

Each of these beauties will cost about 22million euros.

It is almost like science fiction. Yes, I am proud to announce the Greece is entering the 21st century!