Arab sheikhs, soccer stars, Silicon Valley achievers and other millionaires could be on the list of those who have already ordered a Cobalt Co50 Valkyrie , a five-seater plane that flies at 480 km / h powered by a 350 horsepower engine. power and covers distances of up to 2,000 kilometers. Enough to have breakfast in New York, spend a day at the beach in the Bahamas, and return the next morning.
The first units will be delivered in mid-2017, and getting a customized one in detail (do you prefer silver or black?) Costs $ 750,000, about 672,000 euros to change.
The creator of this beauty is David Loury , a French aerospace engineer who founded the Cobalt company ten years ago with one idea in mind: to create futuristic design devices, slim, fast, safe and very easy to pilot.
The importance of aesthetics is seen in every detail of the Co50 Valkyrie: the cockpit cover is made from a single piece of plexiglass that offers a 320-degree viewing angle, the highest ever achieved on a private plane.
Luxuries for happy minorities
Inside we find leather seats handcrafted by old Hermès artisans, and in the simple and minimalist dashboard there is room to charge the iPad (millionaires are very Apple). Despite the compactness of the plane (9 meters long, 9 meters wide and 3 meters high) , Cobalt ensures that golf clubs, skis and suitcases can easily fit inside. We hope there are no problems with the Moët & Chandon ice buckets and bottles.
David Loury wanted an airplane that was efficient and easy to fly, and that’s why he created the Valkyrie in the configuration of a canard : this is the name given to aircraft in which the horizontal stabilizer is positioned in front of the wings. This detail makes the device 20% faster than others of its kind, and allows it to consume less fuel, something important even for oil tycoons.
In addition, this configuration makes it more stable and safe in flight: stalling is almost impossible , according to Loury, who sells the virtues of her beautiful creature like no one else. He states that “once you start the engine, the Valkyrie is as easy to ride as a car. It will forgive your mistakes, even if you are a bad driver.”
