From 2024, Swedish company OceanSky Cruises will fly elite passengers in a sustainable, floating five-star hotel that’s lighter than air. Rose Dykins reports
In two years’ time, air travel pioneer OceanSky Cruises will launch expeditions from Longyearbyen, Svalbard, to the North Pole in its next-generation airship.
A sustainable aviation alternative that enables intrepid luxury travel, OceanSky Cruises’s airship is a 100-metre-long hybrid aircraft, combining buoyancy from helium with aerodynamic lift created by the shape of its hull. Driven forward by four propellors, the vehicle can fly continuously for days.
As the cabin isn’t pressurised, the on-board experience is quiet, with with pleasant quality of air. The airship also moves so slowly and smoothly, that OceanSky Cruises says no seatbelts are needed on board.
He adds: “Roald Amundsen flew from Svalbard and over the North Pole in 1926 with the airship ‘Norge’. Now we are doing the same expedition, but we will also land on the North Pole. The passengers will enjoy the Arctic nature in serenity and comfort in a hyper-efficient modern flying vehicle. They will be pioneering a new way to travel, flying for sustainable skies.”
Making it possible to fly continuously for days without needing supporting infrastructure, airships present a compelling proposition for high-end adventures, and accessing remote corners in the world with a minimal environmental impact.
Lawaczeck says: “[Airships] are the most efficient and clean aerial vehicles and they give us the freedom to access remote locations – wilderness, untouched places – without a footprint.”