Flying boats were all the rage in the 1930s, and some designs were spectacular, such as the huge Norman Bel Geddes concept, seen here in poster form flying over New York.
The NBG never got built, which was probably just as well - it would have struggled to get airborne, even with 20 piston engines roaring away. Still, flying boats of all kinds - Boeing, Sikorsky, Short were just three manufacturers - opened up the international airways, and their grace still resonates in much the same way as those giants of the skies, airships and dirigibles.
The sight of a three-engined Dornier Do-24 flying boat taking off from St Helier Bay, Jersey, a couple of years ago was amazing. Hundreds of us watched as a fine mist of seawater cascaded from the hull as she (definitely a ‘boat’ then!) took to the air, and a ripple of applause greeted the unlikeliness of it all. Aaah, what a sight!
Will we ever see the huge clippers return? It’s unlikely, sad to say - the economics of long-haul jet flight demand the efficiency of a high-flying tube with turbofan engines (aka Boeing 747, Airbus 380 et al), something that flying boats cannot match. However, all is not lost - smaller designs such as the 12-passenger Dornier Seastar will continue to fill a niche role in littoral waters around the world. Just make sure you take a flight when it’s on offer!
Buy a model kit of a Dornier here
Visit Dornier's website here
