Volkswagen at the Forefront of Yacht Design? Not Exactly

You read that right. This yacht is so fast, and its design so aerodynamically tuned that it’s literally supposed to just hover above the surface of whatever water you’re traveling through. How this happens, however, is a whole ‘nother story.

This vehicle is supposed to be able to do this by relying on something known as the ground effect. How it works is a bit more complex that this article could hold, just know that the Russians are the masters of this idea.

What we are looking at, however, is known as the Volkswagen Seaero, and is the conceptual design of one Ricardo Pilguj. This Brunswick, Germany based gentleman has his fingers in all the design pies, from industrial to yacht, interior, and even transportation, he does it all. So you know he’s bound to show us something spectacular. I personally feel he does.

The vessel itself, however, isn’t the first to be developed by Pilguj. His concept sketches show us more than 50 designs for the Seaero before finally choosing the one you see before you. Upon looking at the body, we can clearly see Pilguj did inspire himself from the manta ray as his ketches show. But that’s just a meer resemblance. This yacht looks more like a spaceship meant to travel to off-world planets.

But it isn’t designed as other yachts we may have shown you. This one is more a traveling workstation type vessel. Its designed to act as a transport vessel for over-seas journeys. Now, we don’t have any details as to the specifics of its speed, but more vehicles that utilize the ground effect to travel are indeed equipped with wings and turbines, planes basically.

Oddly enough we see nothing on the design that resembles any turbines, or even anything closely resembling a propulsion system. But the designer does show that air from the ground effect would enter between those gaping front jaws, and flow out of the back. My guess is that there’s some sort of propulsion system hidden between the body and fins of the structure.

The interior of the Seaero is, as I've said, not meant for luxury living. We don’t even see a bedroom or sleeping quarters, but rather some simple spaces where to just lean back while getting to your destination. The rear area, which is also outside and exposed to the elements, includes a couple of lounge pads suitable for only about four guests at a time, while the inside allows for about six more guests.

Another aspect of the interior are the working spaces. Little nooks and crannies show us futuristic desks where someone could have a seat and work while traveling. But this vessel can also rest on water. So that rear area we mentioned earlier also acts as a beach deck, albeit a very small one.

Just imagine for a second having to travel from Maui to San Fran, a usual 4-hour flight. Done in just two hours, theoretically. All the while you finish your presentation and have an hour to kill. Why not get some sun. Careful not to fly off, as you might skip like a stone on water.