The Jet Capsule isn't an ugly duckling by any means, but designer Pierpaolo Lazzarini imagines a beautiful swan with his latest creation, the Avanguardia. The mega-yacht would feature a small watercraft that would serve as a removable cockpit in this ambitious conceptual project.
The Avanguardia (Vanguard in English) is inspired by an unspecified Japanese Manga from the 1970s and its defining feature is that long "neck." The idea is that the neck would serve as a crane and could be used to safely deposit a smaller craft in the water when anchor's dropped, allowing it to be used to reach shore, for example. Interestingly, the neck would actually be placed in a lowered back position while sailing – so presumably the raised position depicted above would end up mostly being used for showing off at port.
"Due to an extendable crane/bridge located in the bow (front) in this case named 'neck,' the head can be dropped off and used as an auxiliary 16-meter [52-ft] boat," explains Lazzarini Design Studio. "During the sailing, the head 'control tower cockpit' adjusts its position by lowering in the middle of the mega-yacht body (like a swan, the neck goes in the middle of the wings)."
The yacht would measure 137 m (450 ft) in length and consist of five main decks. Lazzarini envisions it requiring a crew of 10 to maintain and a staff of 12 to keep up to 60 passengers suitably pampered. It would be powered by a MTU Rolls-Royce Jet engine, which would be able to push it to an estimated maximum cruising speed of 18 knots (21 mph, 33 km/h).
The rear deck would host a pair of Jet Capsules, which Lazzarini suggests could be used as an auxiliary propulsion system. There would also be a swimming pool, two helipads, and a garage that's shown with expensive cars installed in the renders. Additionally, a large solar panel array could be used to help with electricity needs, though there's no word on its capacity.
Such practicalities are really beyond the scope of this blue sky design anyway, which is purely conceptual at the moment – that is, unless it happens to catch the eye of some billionaire who decides to commission it. If that sounds like you, then set aside US$500 million, plus the operating budget of a small country to run the thing.
Source: Lazzarini Design Studio
