Hydro Kite – A wind-powered vehicle to sail over Atlantic Ocean

A team of ten students from TU Delft have conceived a combination of an airplane and a sailboat into one sustainable vehicle dubbed Hydro Kite. Powered by wind only, this vehicle includes three sections – a kite, a cabin and a keel. The 157 m 2 large kite flies 100 meters above the water and plays the role of powering this vehicle with wind energy. While the two-seater cabin dangles at 15 meters above the water. The designers have provided room for food and toilet too. Interlinked to these two is the airplane-shaped keel which sails several meters below the water surface. Wonder what this unit works as? Weighing 66 pounds, it is about two meters long and has an equally wide wingspan. Crafted out of a glass reinforced plastic it is shaped like an airplane, including a rudder and a tail. Such a form facilitates easy maneuverability. Responsible for most of the controls, the keel prevents the kite from interfering with cabin.

The Hydro Kite is estimated to travel from New York to Cornwall, England with a maximum speed of 90 kilometers per hour in four days and an hour. Sadly that is three hours shorter than the current record.
Though such a concept is a clean alternative for gas-guzzling aircraft, it still needs a lot of tweaking before hitting the production stage. Hence it is still on papers and is being worked upon to plug all loop holes.
Till then we can be assured of some real green aircraft in the recent future – The SkySpark.
Thanks Adam Wellington