A boat for (very) quick getaways

Another speedboat shaped like a whale, only this one claims a speed of up to 140 mph (about 122 knots).

The Sea Phantom, noticed by Born Rich, is a "flying" speedboat from David Borman at Maritime Flight Dynamics, in Fort Meyers Beach, Fla. The company technically refers to the vehicle as if it were a plane. In fact, the company motto is "Helicopter speed. Powerboat price."

(Credit: Maritime Flight Dynamics)

I'm not sure exactly what powerboats Maritime Flight is referring to, as the Sea Phantom ranges in price from $400,000 to $600,000 for the 30-foot version that cruises at 85 mph (about 74 knots). The boat has a dry weight of 1,750 pounds and can ride up to 4 feet above the crests of your average waves. It balances on hydrofoils, of course.

The Sea Phantom can hold a standard Mercury outboard motor, but the company is in talks with Innodyn to design a lightweight inboard six-cylinder diesel engine. It will be able to burn soy-diesel fuel, as well.

The larger, 50-foot version will sell for $2.5 million, and Maritime says it will "fly" 8 to 12 feet above wave crests and do "150 knots." That is about 173 mph.

Aside from maybe the military, who needs to go that fast, that stealthily? The Maritime Web site says its boat is a good vehicle for "making scheduled travel with impunity, across, for example, the Gulf of Mexico, Coastal U.S. routes, island-to-island throughout the Caribbean, or South Pacific Islands..."