Virgin's underwater plane revealed by Richard Branson

Amazing prototype underwater plane was unveiled by Richard Branson's Virgin Limited Edition. The 415000 pounds Necker Nymph submersible plane is capable so far to dive deep to about 50 meters but the company hopes in the future the vehicle will reach depths of 12 km. The underwater plane will "fly" at a speed of 2 to 5 nautical miles per hour for a maximum time of 2 hours. Unlike normal submarines which use ballast to sink, the Nymph uses downward pressure on its wings to navigate at various levels through the water and moreover the passengers will experience a 360-degrees view from the open cockpit. Furthermore the luxury vehicle is fitted with fighter-jet technology and can be maneuvered by a joystick. The inauguration event is gonna happen on 20 February 2010 when 2 passengers and a pilot will dive the Virgin's plane from land or boat.
The three-person Necker Nymph is mainly assigned for wealthy people who want to explore the Atlantic waters around the Necker Island in the Carribean Sea. The normal price is $25000 a week but there are some other expensive conditions: the vacationer can fly the Nymph only after booking also a $88000 place on Branson's 105-foot yacht, Necker Belle. In total the Necker Island experience can reach as high as $400000 a week.
Virgin's Necker Nymph was designed and manufactured by Hawkes Ocean Technology - a San Francisco based company.
Video report Necker Nymph underwater plane (video CNN).