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What makes Deep Flight I different from conventional submersibles?
Previous submersible craft all use variable weight and or displacement (ie ballast and buoyancy tanks, drop weights, etc.) to change their apparent weight in water causing the craft to either sink or become buoyant and rise to the surface. Variable Buoyancy (VB) is then a fundamental characteristic of the bathyscaphe, submersible, and submarines. In contrast, Deep Flight I has no VB systems; rather it moves vertically through the water, under power using forces developed on its wing surfaces similar to an aircraft. Deep Flight I makes an analogous transition underwater that balloons/blimps made in air to heavier than air machines, or fixed wing aircraft.
A second difference is that Deep Flight I is a micro-submersible, actually better described as a pressure suit fitted to a human body. We have designed Deep Flight I in this way to limit the size/weight of the sub, and in so doing, eliminate the need for a dedicated mother ship (note: all other submersibles require mother ships for operations), and thus drastically minimizing the costs of operating the sub.
Another big difference with Deep Flight I is the unique environment it creates for its pilot. Humans, as terrestrials, are subject to earth's gravity, and therefore have a very rigid concept of up and down. The predecessors to Deep Flight — bathyscaphes, conventional submersibles and submarines — maintain these dry laws underwater by building the craft with inherent stability so that they will maintain the "correct" attitude (i.e. remain rigidly horizontal while underwater). Deep Flight's pilot lies prone - like the majority of big animals who move through the water.
How deep has Graham taken Deep Flight I?
Graham has taken Deep Flight I down to approximately 150 feet. He has not taken the sub deeper because Deep Flight I has only been in the water for television projects, and the cameramen could not dive deeper than 150 feet.
When are you going to build Deep Flight II, and "fly" down to the Mariana's Trench?
We have designed Deep Flight II. We are in the process of trying to raise appromaximately $15 million in corporate sponsorship so that we can build the sub, and carry out our "Ocean Everest" expedition to the bottom of the Mariana's Trench. Once we have raised the funding, the sub could be built within 18 months.
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How deep can your Deep Flight submersibles dive?
Our Deep Flight submersibles are designed to customer specifications. Typically, our recreational/adventure submersibles are requested for 100-300 meters operational depth; however, we have tested and proven the Deep Flight winged submersible technology to 6000 meters.
Are the Deep Flight submersibles as cutting edge as they seem?
The world of deep manned submersibles (100 feet +) is extremely limited. The principle players are France, the former Soviet Union, the U.S., and Japan - who have a handful of operational craft in total amongst them. In the past, access has been mostly for government/military, or industry-sponsored. Only in the last few years have these submersibles become somewhat more available (for those who can afford the approximate $40,000/day costs) — beginning with James Cameron's use of the Russian MIR submersibles to film the movie "Titanic." Today, people can dive on the Titanic for approximately $35,000, and in some parts of the world, you can take a 30-60 minute ride in a tour submersible.
The Deep Flight submersibles, to the best of our knowledge, are the first and only submersible to break into the realm of flight and to be offered as a vehicle for private pilot training. There are various "wet" scuba systems (such as our own Wet Flight for example) that operate on the principle of flight, and nuclear submarines, at speed, certainly transition into that realm. Also, there are various inventions - some built, some not - that claim to fly; however, it seems clear that by any reasonable standard, the Deep Flight 502 is in a breakthrough class of its own.
How much do your submersibles cost?
Our current line of Deep Flight winged submersibles start around $750,000 for custom-designed submersibles for private clients. We are also working on the next generation of Deep Flight submersibles (production units).
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