Would You Stay at This Massive Nuclear-Powered Flying Hotel?

The flying hotel concept recently debuted online

Nuclear power is and has been a key part of our lives. But have you ever imagined taking a sky cruise in a flying hotel powered by this form of energy? If not, you can start thinking of it now. ‘Science communicator and video producer’ Hashem Al-Ghaili recently shared a video in which he showed a new Sky Cruise concept that Tony Holmston first created. It is a flying hotel that can carry more than 5,000 passengers in “the epitome of luxury.”

Also known as Skytanic or Flytanic, the flying hotel will be powered by 20 nuclear-powered engines. It won’t need to land but will endlessly cruise above the cloud line and offer views of stunning sunrises and sunsets as well as breathtakingly beautiful night skies.

Passengers eager to fly to nuclear power using hotel will be ferried via conventional airlines or private jets. These would dock with the flying hotel and drop them off via an external elevator. Once they are on board, the passengers would get to enjoy luxurious living with a 360-degree viewing deck at the tail. They will also enjoy a huge concourse with shopping malls, a state-of-the-art medical facility, and all the usual trappings of a cruise ship at sea that will be available in the main body of the ‘plane.’

To avoid turbulence, the flying hotel will have an AI system that will predict in advance and use a technology similar to noise-cancelling to balance out the bumps so the passengers can “glide over the vibrations with ease.”

In response to his video, Al-Ghaili stressed that the hotel powered by nuclear energy is just a concept but that he dreams of “a future where such stuff could exist.” He rebuffed detractors with Albert Einstein’s quote, “If at first, the idea is not absurd, then there will be no hope for it.”

Explaining the science of the flying hotel, Al-Ghaili stated, “Small nuclear reactors that can power airplanes are expected to be ready by the 2030s. The UK is working on a Small Modular Nuclear Reactor (SMR) that’s expected to join the grid in 2029, and the US is investing heavily in commercial nuclear fusion research. With just a few tweaks to the design, nuclear fusion, and proper aerodynamics, the Sky Cruise could someday take off and carry thousands of passengers above the clouds.”

The reactions to the flying hotel video have been quite mixed. Some people were worried about the project’s costs, which will probably increase the cost of the tickets, while others are noy sure whether the physics behind a nuclear-powered flying hotel checks out. Still, it’s nice to imagine that we can avoid the common hell of cramming ourselves into a tiny seat space next to a screaming child for ten hours of torture that is commercial flying today.