With DeepFlight, flying underwater's a joy (pictures)
CNET's Daniel Terdiman rode in a SuperFalcon, going 150 feet deep, doing something fewer people have done than go into space.
Diving
LAKE TAHOE, Calif. -- When you're doing something fewer people have done than go into space, it's hard not to feel privileged.
That's especially true when it's riding inside a DeepFlight SuperFalcon, a two-person submersible that plies the depths of lakes and oceans like a sleek airplane.
Designed for owners of super yachts, and costing $1.7 million, these are machines only a few people will ever experience. But they allow those inside them to view the underwater world with clarity and closeness that almost no other method can offer.
Going up
Controlled on a fly-by-wire system, the SuperFalcon can dive to 120 meters, and has the nimble freedom of movement of a small plane. It can fly alongside dolphins, or dive with whales. And because it's positively buoyant, if something goes wrong mechanically, it simply floats back to the surface.
On trailer
On a day of diving in Lake Tahoe, the SuperFalcon sits on its trailer in the early morning sunshine, its two acrylic domes covered up.
Straight on
A look at the SuperFalcon, which is just 8.8 feet wide (including wings) from the front.
Thumbs-up
CNET's Daniel Terdiman (sitting in the rear) gives the thumbs-up as the SuperFalcon is lowered into the waters of Lake Tahoe. DeepFlight founder and lead designer Graham Hawkes sits in front.
Graham Hawkes
Hawkes, who has been designing submersible vehicles for decades, once built one for the 1981 James Bond film, "For Your Eyes Only."
Pushing off the dock
A swimmer in a dry suit pushes the SuperFalcon off its dock and out into the open water.
Heading out
The SuperFalcon begins to motor out onto Lake Tahoe, preparing to dive below the surface. The submersible operates on a DC thruster and lithium-iron battery system, and is a zero-emissions vehicle.
Console
Each person in the SuperFalcon has a console in front of their acrylic dome, which allows them to see the submersible's heading and depth.
Diving down
As the SuperFalcon dives, the console is flooded with bubbles.
Calm underwater
Once underwater, everything appears calm and quiet. In Lake Tahoe, where there is little marine life, the water is eerily still, and impossibly blue.
Reflection as surfacing
As the SuperFalcon reaches for the surface, its reflection is mirrored on the underside of the calm water.
Above the surface
As it surfaces, the SuperFalcon sticks just above water level.
Going by
Photographed from an underwater camera on a boat at the surface, the SuperFalcon glides by, leaving just the barest trace of a wake.
Below the surface
Photographed from a pier, the SuperFalcon is seen entirely underwater, just below the surface.
Breaking the surface
The SuperFalcon, seen just as it breaks the surface of Lake Tahoe. It travels at speeds between 2.3 and 6.9 miles an hour.
Drone filming
An octocopter flies above the surface, filming the SuperFalcon as it plies Lake Tahoe.
Drone fliming closer
A closer look at an octocopter that's filming the SuperFalcon.
Quick turn
The SuperFalcon's wake shows how sharp a turn it can make. The submersible can make very steep dives or ascents, and can even "fly" upside down.
Diving
The SuperFalcon dives for the depths of Lake Tahoe.
Dome reflection
As it nears the surface, but before breaking through, the SuperFalcon's front dome is seen reflected on the underside of the water.
Thumbs-up close-up
CNET reporter Daniel Terdiman gives another thumbs-up as the SuperFalcon motors quietly back to the dock.
No passengers
There are "no passengers" on a DeepFlight submersible like the SuperFalcon, explained Graham Hawkes, the company's founder and head designer. Each person aboard has flight controls, and either person can pilot it at any time.
Waving
CNET's Daniel Terdiman waves from the SuperFalcon, seen from the pier above.