'Tesla of the oceans'

The Super Falcon 3S has three cockpits, suitable for a pilot and two passengers. These are kept at one atmosphere of pressure (similar to the pressure of an aircraft cabin) so there's no fear of suffering the "bends" on returning to the surface. Each cockpit has an acrylic dome, giving passengers a crystal-clear, 360-degree view of the surrounding sea life. And the sub is environmentally friendly. Powered by electricity - the company has dubbed it the "Tesla of the oceans" - it never lands on reefs or touches the sea bed.

Wright explains that DeepFlight had "started from scratch" when designing the sub, which has "positive buoyancy". This means it naturally floats, so it uses its engine to drive it down below the surface, unlike traditional submarines that use water as ballast to dive and rise. The design is also ideal from a safety viewpoint; should the Super Falcon 3S break down, it will simply pop back up to the surface.

The designers also wanted to make a strong lifestyle statement. "One of the features that we're designing into the Super Falcon 3S is this idea of cool.

We want to be able to tap into people's sense of exploration and their inner James Bond, so to speak," says Wright.

"You're getting into an underwater airplane - it looks cool, it feels cool and like you're doing something very adventurous, whereas you're actually doing something that's very, very safe."

To develop the travel business, the company's tourism arm, DeepFlight Adventures, has partnered with Shanghai-based Rainbowfish Ocean Technology, a leader in deep-sea research technology. Wright says that the Rainbowfish connection was developed in part thanks to his Putonghua language skills. He studied mechanical engineering at the University of California at Berkeley, where he made many friends in the Chinese student community and developed a keen interest in the language. Wishing to learn more, he studied Chinese for two years at Yunnan Normal University in Kunming.

After returning to the US, he joined DeepFlight to live out his passion for submarines. "You can think of the ocean as the last remaining frontier," he says. "More people have set foot on the moon than have gone to the deepest part of the ocean."

A niche business

DeepFlight has two main markets: tourism and the superwealthy, who want submarines as playthings on their luxury yachts. Prices for private two- and three-seater subs are in the range of US$1.5 million to $2 million, and the company has sold seven so far.

Among DeepFlight's customers is business magnate Richard Branson, who bought a customized three-seat submarine to use off his private Necker Island. "Submarines are a growing trend among wealthy people, but still very much a niche business," says Wright. "One of our main priorities was to develop the technology to make a smaller and lighter submarine, the Dragon. This opened the door to a wider variety of clientele - you can now own a sub without having to own a 100- to 200-million-dollar yacht."

Can private owners drive their own submarines or do they need trained pilots? "Our private submersibles are very easy to operate," says Wright. "You have a throttle on one side to control the speed and a joystick on the other side to control the heading. It's just like a flying an airplane. And to 'land' the sub, all you do is turn it off and it floats back to the surface."

DeepFlight Adventures has chosen the Maldives - a popular destination with Chinese holidaymakers - to develop its submarine tourism business.

The country's reefs and wildlife make it one of the top dive destinations, and DeepFlight Adventures wanted to send a strong conservation message by exposing people to the waters around the archipelago.

Wright says submarine adventures are slated to commence in the fourth quarter of 2017, with expeditions lasting from 45 minutes to an hour and a half, at prices starting from US$549 per person. The company has a partnership with Ocean Group, which offers watersport activities at resorts on the islands.

With its striking looks and nimble undersea performance, what car would Wright compare the Super Falcon 3S to? "It's a bit difficult to compare it to a car - we try to compare it more to an aircraft," he says. "But if you did have to compare it to a car, I would say ... the Batmobile." Designed for the underwater superhero market, presumably.