The Aether Luxury Airship concept is the final year university project by Mac Byers for his Transport Design BA (Hons) at the University of Huddersfield.
A luxury cruise concept based upon an airship platform, the Aether allows passengers to travel at high speeds in luxury and provides them with some of the most breathtaking views available. The airship is based on the technology currently being developed by Aeroscraft.
For the exterior design, Byers studied things like Thunderbird 2, Star Wars and the NASA Space Shuttle - things that appeal to the young adult generation, the generation that may someday be the target market for the Aether. Wanting to communicate the green credentials of the all-electric Aether, Byers used clean colours like white and formed the main balloon into an aerodynamic and wing-like shape. This also visually communicates that this is a new type of airship. One that is safer and cleaner than airships like the Hindenburg of the 20th century.
Lobby:
Bar:
Dining:
Kitchen:
Bedroom:
Storage:
For the interior, Byers wanted the same efficient aesthetic. To communicate that, he went for a lightweight theme expressed by such innovations as floating surfaces and cable stairways, influenced by strong suspension bridge cables.
This airship is based on the technology currently being developed by Aeroscraft, a company presently developing modern airships. This means it uses its engines as its primary source of lift, while using the Helium to simply offset the weight of the load. It also has an air ballast system allowing the crew to regulate the total weight of the craft by compressing air.
The modelling and rendering was done in 3DS Max with Mental Ray. After Effects was used for the exterior environments and smoke. Byers then used Sony Vegas for the final editing.
Designer Mac Byers is currently just about to graduate from the University of Huddersfield where he's been studying for a degree in Transport Design BA (Hons). With a life-long interest in both cars and visual effects, Byers loved watching films like Jurassic Park and reading magazines like Top Gear. In the future he hopes to work in a field that allows him to follow his passion for both good design and excellent visual communication.
See more of his work here.