The Sky Cruise would use clean nuclear energy to stay afloat for several years

What would a cruise liner look like if it could fly? A bonkers airplane concept is here to show you.

Meet the Sky Cruise, a gigantic flying resort that was conceived by Tony Holmsten about 11 years ago and was recently animated by Hashem Al-Ghaili. The aircraft is equal parts spaceship and ocean liner, and it comes with just about every amenity you could imagine. Its ginormous size can accommodate more than 5,000 guests, who would arrive on board via commercial or private plane (that’s right—jumbo jets would land on top of the Sky Cruise).

As for what you would get to enjoy once checked in, the views are quite obviously the biggest selling point. An elevated deck would provide a 360-degree vantage point for seeing everything from the stars to aurora borealis. From there, an elevator would take you down to the main entertainment deck, which looks like a cruise ship on steroids. You’d have access to shopping malls, sports centres, swimming pools, restaurants, bars, playgrounds, theatres and cinemas.

While all of this makes for a pretty incredible-sounding experience, there’s one aspect of the Sky Cruise that might trump all the others. The aircraft is designed to use nuclear energy, which means it would be able to stay afloat—without landing—for several years. Twenty electric engines would be powered by nuclear energy, with a small nuclear reactor on board using highly controlled fusion reaction to provide unlimited energy.

If this all sounds appealing but air travel gives you the heebie-jeebies, not to worry: The craft would use artificial intelligence to avoid air turbulence. (Now, if they could only implement that on commercial airliners.) There’s also a full medical facility on board.

Right now, the Sky Cruise is a concept straight out of a sci-fi flick. But who knows, maybe one day we’ll all be floating through the sky together, admiring the view and swimming laps thousands of miles above the ground.

This story was first published on Robb Report USA