Question from Kickstarter Campaign

Q

Your site and information are impressive. I am curious about how and why this project is substantially different than the Graham Hawkes Deepflight project. There seems to be considerable crossover with the submersibles.

A

Thank you for your question. The SeaQuestor submersible and the Deepflight project are similar in that we both use features used in traditional aircraft flight control.  What makes the SeaQuestor unique is that we have created a hybrid of a flight controlled and a traditional ballast controlled submersible. This blend enables us to purge ballast tanks to submerge below the surface, travel  long distances at speed using the fight controls, arrive at the mission location, set the trim controls, and then use the horizontal and vertical thrusters to maneuver near to the mission objects. The Flyer can maintain a set vertical elevation, observe and record the mission, transit back to the start point, and use the ballast tanks to provide surface stabilization for egress to the support vessel for the next mission. With safety protocols that provide 8 hours of mission time and 72 hours of rescue time, a height of hatch to water surface distance for egress safety in certain ocean conditions, redundant battery systems for thrusters and life support systems, and paired with the flight characteristics, the SeaQuestor  provides a instrument uniquely suitable for many scientific missions.