June 7th, 2008
French industrial designer Jean-Marie Massaud believes that slow cruising in an airship could be the next step in air travel and he is partnering with Onera, France’s space agency, to create the world’s first luxury airship.
“Manned Cloud” will have a top speed of 170 kilometers per hour, but will generally travel at 130 kilometers per hour, a more comfortable speed for sight-seeing. The vessel, which will be 210 meters long, 82 meters wide and 52 meters high, will only require re-fuelling after 5,000 kilometers and will be able to remain airborne for roughly three days.
Massaud Studio is promoting the futuristic vessel as an ecologically friendly way to travel. Landscapes will be enjoyed from above rather than being disfigured or damaged by tourist infrastructure.
A restaurant, bookstore, fitness studio and bar will provide entertainment, should watching the world go by through the enormous panorama windows, or tanning on the sun deck on the top of the vessel, become boring.
Intrigued by Massaud’s spaceship-like design and the possibility of a new aeronautics market, Onera has been testing the aerodynamics and flight-control capabilities of a scale model for the past year.
This spring, the agency recommended a slightly less grand version of the airship, capable of carrying 15 passengers and traveling at 80 mph. Massaud hopes the new design will attract the attention of private investors, from whom he aims to secure as much as $15 billion to begin building the Manned Cloud, with a sail date of 2020.
June 6th, 2008
MAZ Aviation has placed a commitment for six Airbus A350 XWB Prestiges to serve its customers, in what is the first deal for the type in the Middle East. The deal is also the largest single deal ever for Airbus corporate jetliners, and comprises one A350-800 and five A350-900s.
All six Airbus A350 XWBs will feature VIP cabins, and be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines. The choice of cabin outfitters has yet to be announced.
The Airbus A350 XWB Prestige is the world’s newest airliner and, in its VIP version, offers unmatched widebody space and comfort - as well as the range to fly non-stop to the world. It has the widest cabin, greatest floorspace and longest range of any aircraft in its class.
“The kind of private customer that buys a VIP widebody wants the very best, and that’s exactly what they get with the Airbus A350 XWB Prestige,” says MAZ Aviation Chairman Mohammed Al Zeer. “With more cabin space, more range and a more modern design, the Airbus A350 XWB is the VIP widebody of the future.”
The Airbus A350 XWB features an advanced and efficient aerodynamic design, more than 50 per cent of its airframe is made of weight-saving carbonfibre composites, and has all of the new features customers expect in a new design from an innovative company such as Airbus.
June 5th, 2008
With oil skirting $130 a barrel and demand for business-class travel slowing, it’s not the best time to launch an airline .
However, Forbes reports that Peter Leiman and Cameron Ogden, two Harvard Business School graduates are launching the new private jet taxi service, Blink, on June 12.
Blink’s current flight plans take you through much of Western Europe and the the tickets are up to 25% more expensive than regular business-class travel for seats on their four-seater Cessna Citation Mustang.
June 5th, 2008
Think the price of your airline tickets is growing while the legroom is shrinking? Well, it isn’t for everybody. Elite travellers are accustomed to significantly better accomodations.
Newsweek is singling out what it says are the eight most luxurious airlines in the world right now, and by the looks of some of these pictures, some of these flying experiences might have you thinking hard about actually caring whether you reach your destination !
The eight most luxurious airlines in the world enlisted by Newsweek in order are:
- Virgin Atlantic
- Qatar Airways
- Emirates
- Singapore
- British Airways
- Qantas
- Thai Airways
- Swiss International Airlines
May 21st, 2008
Hawker Beechcraft, the business jet spinoff of Raytheon has released their latest jet, the Premier II.
Evolving from the successful Premier IA, the Premier II will feature higher cruise speeds, a 20 percent longer range with four passengers and an increased payload… while still offering the largest cabin and most technologically advanced single-pilot business jet in the world.
The Premier II will be a twin turbofan, swept wing, light jet aircraft featuring a high-strength, state-of-the-art all-composite fuselage that allows for a medium-jet sized cabin at light jet costs.
The planes will use new FJ44-3AP turbofan engines from Williams International which offer more than 23 percent more thrust from the Premier IA (and have lower emissions than those of the Premier I). Combined with new elliptical winglets which offer reduced drag, the new engines let the business jets hit a maximum cruising altitude of 45,000 feet and fly farther.
The Hawker Beechcraft Premier II is expected to be put into service in 2010 with orders being taken at present.
May 17th, 2008
Singapore Airlines is installing iPod docks and 15.4-inch widescreen LCDs in their all-Business Class Airbus A340-500 flights between NY/LA and Singapore.
Whilst two years ago, the crew promoted their luxury seats with superior first class cabin that were packed with largest chairs in the sky.
The proviso will facilitate flyers to enjoy movies and music via integrated noise-proof headphones that gets switched off as and when any announcement is made from the flight crew. Via gizmodo
French industrial designer Jean-Marie Massaud believes that slow cruising in an airship could be the next step in air travel and he is partnering with Onera, France’s space agency, to create the world’s first luxury airship.
