Why choose between exploring the world via land or sea when you could have both?
That’s the idea behind Lazzarini Design Studio’s new Colossea megayacht. The Italian design firm has worked on a 699-foot vessel that serves as both your typical yacht and a floating docking station for a 347-foot detachable airship—truly the best of both worlds.
Image courtesy of Lazzarini Design Studio
The megayacht itself is a sleek vessel, with three HTS engines that can bring it up to a maximum speed of 22 knots. (The propellers on the airship can help increase and support the efficiency of the sailing.) The commander cabin is shared with that of the airship, making the piloting experience practically seamless between the two craft.
As for the airship, the carbon-fibre blimp is held down by secure ropes until given the green light to disengage. Dubbed the Norge 2.0, it’s named after the semi-rigid Italian airship that completed the first verified trip of any kind to the North Pole, way back in May 1926. According to Lazzarini, it was also the first craft to fly over the polar ice cap between Europe and the United States. The new version, designed to blend in with the yacht, features 10 guest cabins for a comfortable flying experience for all on board.
This isn’t the first time Lazzarini has experimented with combining sea and air transport. Back in 2022, the firm debuted the Air Yacht, which involved a 262-foot hull sitting between two 492-foot airships. And last year, the 243-foot Plectrum was designed with giant wings that would allow it to “fly” across the ocean. “This different superyacht configuration will allow much faster travel than conventional ships of a similar size,” the studio said in a statement at the time.
As for who the Colossea may be perfect for, Lazzarini sent a not-so-subtle message in one of its renderings of the airship. Trailing behind the craft is a banner that reads “Elon, get in touch!” As far as we know, the X (formerly known as Twitter) CEO doesn’t yet own a superyacht, although he does have several private jets in his possession. Perhaps the Colossea could fill a hole in the billionaire’s modes of transport.
