A flying boat that is designed to make few waves is already making waves of a different kind as it arrives in Italy this week.
It’s hoped it will be a solution to the ‘moto ondoso’ phenomenon in Venice, where the wakes of motorboats erode and damage historical buildings in the historic city centre.
“There is no wake after the boat, so you don’t disturb other traffic, or other boaters or erode coastlines,” said Mikael Mahlberg, the communications manager for Candela Speed Boat.
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The Swedish company’s new electric boat uses hydrofoils that act like underwater wings, lifting the boat’s hull into the air and reducing water friction by about 80 per cent.
The boat is then able to cruise long distances using only battery power with minimal noise and a fraction of the energy expenditure of a regular boat.
“We use hydrofoils, to get the long range, get the high speed,” added Mahlberg.
“You also have a very low maintenance cost because it’s an electric drivetrain, with no moving parts basically.
“We think this is the future of boating; this is how boats will look like in the future”.