Up on hydrofoils, Candela's speedboats can reach 30 knots - CANDELA
A speedboat comes into view in the Autumn sunshine, but it doesn’t look anything like most of the electric boats I’ve seen. The Candela P-7 has the long sleek contours of a conventional powerboat and I’m about to fly it. This is, the Swedish company claims, the world’s first electric hydrofoil speedboat.
Once onboard, a short distance out from the jetty, the demonstrator instructs me to fasten my seat belt. “Ready for take-off?” he asks, pushing the throttle forward, just like an aircraft. As if on cue, there is a whirring sound, two red hydrofoils move down through the boat and onto the water, and up we go.
As we move out towards the Stockholm archipelago, we aim for the back of a passenger ferry and ride the wake. There are no thumps, no bumps. The Candela C-7 just glides.
I take over the throttle and steering wheel. As we accelerate, the boat feels momentarily unstable but then we go up on hydrofoils come up and it’s smooth and quiet. At first it feels as if we are skating on two blades, albeit in a surprisingly stable way, but this wears off as I become more used to flying.
Three days later, I have the chance to fly the boat again in different weather conditions - driving rain. I am more confident; the novelty of being up on a hydrofoil is wearing off. Although the cockpit is open, I remain surprisingly dry, protected by the splash screen in front of the steering wheel.
At 20 nautical knots an hour, the optimum speed for energy efficiency, the Candela handles easily and stays balanced, thanks to the fighter-jet technology behind the boat’s software and electronics.
The hydrofoils ensure that drag is reduced, and Candela claims energy consumption slashed by as much as 80% compared with other traditional - hulled electric speedboats. The C-7's 40kWh battery is relatively light, and with a lightweight carbon fibre hull, it's easy to reach 30 knots. Forbes - link - Heather Farmbrough - link - more like this - link
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