Important Innovations

  Electric Sea Gliders                                                  Source:  REGENT REGENT & Hawaiin Airlines Partner on New Type of E-Plane A fascinating new form of aviation technology is being developed.  Boston-based REGENT (which stands for Regional Electric Ground Effect Nautical Transport) has developed a new type of electric aircraft that flies just above the surface of the water. Now, Hawaiian airlines is partnering with and investing in REGENT, which was founded by two MIT trained engineers with significant, real world, aviation and aerospace experience.  Hawaiian Airlines expects to deploy the all-electric powered, next generation, sea glider planes for inter-island travel.  This is a brand-new form of zero emissions flying.  In fact, it is a brand-new category in the commercial aviation market as it operates exclusively over water. Island Hopping Itineraries Hawaiian Airlines planes to deploy the highly advanced planes for island hoping, such as between the heavily

  REGENT's Seaglider                                                 Source:  REGENT Seaglider Combo Plane & Boat for Coastal Commutes It's being called the next generation of coastal transportation.  A flying electric boat or ferry, capable of carrying 12 passengers, is currently being tested in the waters of Tampa Bay Florida.  It is the invention of Boston aerospace startup REGENT, founded by two MIT aerospace engineers.  This vehicle is six times faster than a water ferry and is one-half the cost of a regular plane.  The Mayor of nearby St. Peterburg calls it "more energy efficient, more climate friendly and less stressful" than current forms of travel. WIGs The Seaglider is potentially disruptive technology. The vehicle is categorized as a WIG or Wing in Ground Effect craft.  WIGs glide over the water using ground effect, which is the aerodynamic interaction between the moving wing and the surface below.  It achieves higher speeds and uses less energy than tr

  REGENT's Seaglider                                                                        Source:  REGENT Seaglider Combo Plane & Boat for Coastal Commutes It's being called the next generation of coastal transportation.  A flying electric boat or ferry, capable of carrying 12 passengers, is currently being tested in the waters of Tampa Bay Florida.  It is the invention of Boston aerospace startup REGENT, founded by two MIT aerospace engineers.  This vehicle is six times faster than a water ferry and is one-half the cost of a regular plane.  The Mayor of nearby St. Peterburg calls it "more energy efficient, more climate friendly and less stressful" than current forms of travel. WIGs The Seaglider is potentially disruptive technology. The vehicle is categorized as a WIG or Wing in Ground Effect craft.  WIGs glide over the water using ground effect, which is the aerodynamic interaction between the moving wing and the surface below.  It achieves higher speeds and u

  High Speed Air/Water Travel Commute                                        Source:  Regent Seaglider Regent Seaglider Is New Electric Travel Tech Would you love to get from Boston to Nantucket, or from any major city to a beautiful nearby coastal location, in record time?  There's a new electric aircraft, that's part plane and boat, that can do it.  It's called the Regent Seaglider.  The EV taxis across the water from a dock and then takes off and lands on open water, and then taxis back to the dock to discharge passengers.  This EV is similar to a Seaplane but it is much more technologically sophisticated.  The Seaglider is the creation of two MIT aerospace engineers, Billy Thalheimer and Mike Klinker who both worked at Aurora Flight Services and Boeing , before founding their Boston based startup Regent. Regent Seaglider now has nearly $500 million in orders for this unique EV and billionaire Mark Cuban as a founding backer.  The Seaglider is specifically designed for f

Gita: Designed to Carry Your Groceries, Gear, Equipment - All in Motion on Foot with You Source:  Piaggio Fast Forward Gita Your Personal Butler Jeeves on the Street with You This is very cool robotic innovation, a new "Follow Me" robot named Gita, invented by Piaggio Fast Forward, a Boston startup, backed by the company that licensed Vespa.  This personal cargo robot can carry up to 45 pounds of groceries, luggage or equipment and directly follow the owner in a type of  Jeeves-like butler fashion right on the street.  It's a wheeled based bot that is designed to move like humans move.  It follows the owner with visual sensors at speeds up to 6 mph.  The company calls this tech "sustainable, mobility ecology" that lets humans walk more and drive less. Cargo Following You Hands Free The inventors say Gita is designed to enable humans to do less driving and do more walking by hauling their groceries and other items with a robotic cargo system.  Gita can

Hawaiian Airlines Unstoppable Boston to Honolulu Photo: Courtesy of Hawaiian Airlines Boston Gets Its First Aloha This historic, upcoming flight service is a first in US aviation history.  Hawaiian Airlines just announced it's introducing the longest non-stop flight service  in the US.  Non-stop Boston to Honolulu.  The 5,095 mile trip starts daily service in April 2019, 5 days a week. Time and Distance Boston has been the only major US city without direct, nonstop service to Hawaii.  To initiate it, Hawaiian Airlines will use an Airbus A 330 aircraft.  Boston to Honolulu will take 12 hours nonstop.  Honolulu to Boston 10 hours non-stop.  For the airline, the market potential right now is 500 passengers who go between eastern New England and Hawaii everyday.  That's a market that could grow. Interesting and historic innovation in the airline industry.