These Next-Gen Supersonic Jets Want to Replace the Concorde. Will They Ever Take Off?

Skeptics think not, but a core of true believers are inching forward with new designs and test flights.

By J. George Forant 14/06/2024

To dig into the state of supersonic flight these days is to invite an unlikely conversation about cell phones. Three out of five experts in the field compared the smartphone of 20 years ago with a future generation of jets that hope to blow past Mach 1.

“Think of the original iPhone. In those early days, it made huge leaps every year. That’s where we are with supersonic,” says Blake Scholl, CEO of Boom. “Tech advances in S-curves. Products go through periods of slow development, then rapid improvement, then level off again to incremental gains.”

The Concorde, the world’s only commercial supersonic jet, was the big, clunky plastic phone that the very wealthy first had in their cars, while the new breed of supersonic jet is a flip phone with a keyboard that, according to supersonic’s believers, will eventually morph into the sleek, multifunction supercomputer that has become so affordable that it’s available to almost everyone.

“It’s taken longer than we would’ve hoped, but there will absolutely be supersonic flight,” says Vik Kachoria, the CEO of Spike Aviation. “We think supersonic will offer a lot of value and will be very useful.”

Not everyone shares his certitude.

Boom’s Overture commercial jet touts supersonic’s potential, but faces multiple hurdles.
Boom Aerospace

“If you go back and look it up, starting from the ‘90s, proponents of supersonic flight say it is always 10 years away,” says Brian Foley, a business aviation industry consultant. “Why 10 years? Probably because it’s a number that’s not too distant, but far enough that when the time comes, no one will remember all the promises you made and failed to deliver on.”

One hopeful, Aerion, which counted Boeing and Lockheed Martin as investors, shuttered in 2021 after nearly 20 years of planning for its next-generation AS2 supersonic business jet. If any private company had the potential create a new commercial supersonic reality, it seemed to be Aerion. The backers invested billions and hired top aerospace engineers to work on the minutia of flight beyond Mach 1.0, or 1234 kph.

Then, out of the blue, the company shut down because it couldn’t secure long-term investors who believed in supersonic’s potential. “They had put together amazing talent,” said aviation consultant Rollie Vincent, who did some work for Aerion, shortly after the closure. “The number of PhDs per square foot was off the charts,” he said. “But they weren’t building things. They were trying to refine design and purify aerodynamics. At some point, everybody, including investors, want to see real parts.”

Aerion’s AS2 was the poster child of a potentially successful supersonic jet. After 20 years, the company abruptly folded.
Aerion

Boom, now leading a handful of private supersonic aircraft developers, seemed to realise early that it needed hardware to demonstrate its progress. The company launched its XB-1 demonstrator jet on March 22. Its initial flight topped out at less than 240 knots, but for the first time since the Concorde, a non-military plane built for supersonic speed executed a successful flight. If future test flights progress as projected, the XB-1 could make a run at the sound barrier within a year. And the company’s 150,000-square-foot production facility in Greensboro, N.C., is on schedule to open in late ‘24.

Not far behind, NASA’s X-59 experimental craft should make its first flight later this year. The jet, a product of the QueSST project, represents the government’s attempt to reduce the sonic boom, a key development for supersonic’s commercial future, since it’s illegal to break the sound barrier over land in the U.S. and most other countries.

“The key to lowering the boom is in shaping the airplane and the wing, smoothing them out so the shock waves don’t combine,” says Dave Richwine, deputy project manager for technology on the X-59. “NASA is working at a fundamental level and, hopefully, the industry will bring it all together.”

Mitigating sonic booms is the primary focus of supersonic builders.
Getty

There are signs that approach is working. Spike has absorbed much of NASA’s work while modifying and applying the theories to a larger craft, its 12- to 18-seat business jet called the Diplomat, which won’t launch until at least 2026. Like the X-59, it aims to reduce the boom by manipulating and flattening the sonic waves so they’re directed upwards and largely cancel each other out. The goal is a sonic “thump” or a ground-level sound of roughly 75 decibels perceived, akin to a closing car door.

Exosonic, which is developing unmanned supersonic drones for military training and a 70-seat passenger jet, expresses a similar goal on sound, and is part of the group rallying to change the current law. Instead of a speed limit, builders want a sound limit, so it doesn’t matter how fast a plane flies, so long as it doesn’t rattle the windows of the houses it passes over.

Boom is less preoccupied with noise. Scholl says at some point, a standard will be issued and Boom will meet it. For now, the company plans to address the issue by only going supersonic over the ocean. Over land its planes, says Scholl, will operate 20 percent faster than current commercial jets.

NASA’s X-59 experimental aircraft plans to turn sonic booms into much quieter sonic thumps.
NASA

In theory, Boom’s XB-1 will eventually lead to the Overture, the 64- to 80-seat commercial aircraft the company plans to build once it dials in the technology. American, Japan Air, and United have all put in non-refundable preorders of Overtures, and Scholl hopes the plane will be flying with passengers by 2030.

“We’re very engaged with the FAA and we’ve already received our G1 certification,” Scholl explains. “It’s a long list of boxes we have to check, as it should be, but we’re locked in on the needs and all we have to do is meet them.”

All these supersonic projects feature a modified delta wing and a long, tapered nose that gives the craft a more futuristic, streamlined profile than the Concorde. Aesthetically, the designs are attractive, but they also make it impossible for pilots to see, a problem solved by a system of cameras mounted on the exterior. The XB-1 includes an augmented reality overlay with guidance for the pilots.

Facing critics and shortfall in development funds, Boom CEO Blake Scholl remains a cheerleader for supersonic’s potential.
Boom Aerospace

Spike, which has a longer development timeline, eliminated almost all the windows on the body, replacing them with hi-definition flat screens that run the length of the cabin, on which they can project the exterior view—or a movie or “anything you can put on a computer screen,” says Kachoria.

The Spike chief executive compares the Diplomat to a Gulfstream, with a customisable interior and the option of plush, oversized seats, and Exosonic too plans a business jet version, with three suites, executive seating, and full-recline chairs. Across the supersonic category, weight limitations will reduce the capacity for the kinds of comforts found in typical first-class service, but other considerations will, presumably, make up for any lack of poshness and interior space. “Instead of getting upgraded to business class, someone might get upgraded to supersonic,” says Kachoria. “You won’t have fancy plates, but you’ll arrive at your destination in half the time.”

Foley, who did market research on supersonic jets when he was employed at Dassault Falcon and has worked with Spike, remains skeptical. He forecasts a market of about 300 jets for private owners, or about 30 planes a year for 10 years: “Is that even enough for an engine manufacturer to participate?”

Spike’s concept of its jet interior.
Spike Aerospace

Apparently not. When Aerion shut down, GE Aerospace halted three years of development of the Affinity supersonic engine designed to power Aerion’s AS2. GE, along with major engine builders Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce, Honeywell Aerospace and Safran all passed on developing an engine for Boom, according to AIN.

That left the company with no option but to form an alliance that included Florida Turbine Technologies, GE Additive and StandardAero to invent a propulsion solution, an engine called the Symphony.

“Designing an engine is no easy task, especially from scratch, and it’s potentially a multibillion-dollar exercise beyond designing the plane,” Foley told Robb Report a year ago.

Sustainability remains a concern for observers. The Concorde burned four times as much fuel as the 747.
Getty

Despite that, Boom has built the XB-1 and taken it to the sky. “The technology and supply chain exist,” says Scholl. “There’s no fundamental new science—every key technology in this airplane has already flown before.”

In early 2021, Subaru, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and several other companies formed Japan Supersonic Research with a goal of having an SST passenger jet by 2030. They partnered with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and have access to JAXA research going back to 1997. Shigeya Watanabe, deputy director, recently told Aero Society it was working on improving current technologies as well as developing more sustainable propulsion technologies.

Sustainability was a non-issue when the Concorde first took off in 1969. It burned four times more fuel than a 747 on a Paris-New York flight. Fifty-five years later, it’s now a core challenge for aviation, especially supersonic aircraft. Environmental scientists Anastasia Kharina and Tim MacDonald wrote in a study for the International Council on Clean Transportation that “commercial SSTs could be three times as fuel intensive per passenger as comparable subsonic aircraft.”

Spike Aerospace is considering hydrogen power to align with sustainability initiatives in commercial aviation.
Spike Aerospace

Boom and Exosonic hope to solve the green issue by designing their engines to run on 100-percent sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) while Spike is exploring electric and hydrogen. “The technology for design is so much faster now,” says Kachoria in discussing the engineering challenges. “We can make modifications and see the result onscreen in seconds. They built the Concorde with slide rules and drafting paper and did 10 total iterations. We can do 1,000 simulations in a few hours.”

Kachoria sees supersonic’s potential upside as 900 or more planes over 20 years going to a mix of high-net-worth individuals, fractional leasing services, and airlines. Scholl is even more bullish. “Our ultimate goal is to have supersonic flights on all routes for all passengers,” he says. “These planes will create their own need. As soon as people see others crossing the Pacific in four hours, they’ll say, ‘Why are we sitting in this metal tube for so long when we don’t have to?’”

If Boom and the other supersonic builders succeed, how long will it be before someone is asking a similar question about their jets? Destinus and Hermeus are also aviation start-ups, and they’re developing hypersonic jets that will travel at up to five times the speed of sound.

Lack of interest from aircraft engine manufacturers has forced Boom to develop its own engine.
Boom Aerospace

Pipe dreams or the birth of a new era in flight? The outcome could depend, as Aerion found out, on whether the manufacturers can find the start-up funds, amounting to many billions, for a viable niche in commercial and business aviation. “Never say never,” says analyst Foley. “But these things tend to move at the speed of money, and investors don’t seem to have the risk appetite.”

This article was originally published in Robb Report US.

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Capella Brands Their Own Caviar to Mark Chinese New Year

Capella Sydney continues its commitment to exceptional luxury experiences, with a high tea and caviar upgrade all part of its 2025 Lunar New Year celebrations to usher in the Year of the Snake.

By Belinda Aucott-christie 07/02/2025

These days caviar bumps are on the menu at all the best seaside restaurants, and now guests checking into a suite at Capella Sydney will be saved the trip to the beach with a tin of caviar conveniently stationed in their mini bar.

Downstairs at the chic lobby café Aperture, caviar is also part of their elegantly indulgent high tea. Expertly crafted by Head Pastry Chef Arthur Carré. This bespoke menu features a delectable selection of delicacies, including Capella Kaluga Caviar, sesame prawn toast, Peking duck pancake roll cornetto, fried pork dumplings, and pandan and mandarin lamingtons. The experience is complemented by the delicate notes of white rabbit jasmine tea from Zensation Tea House, with an optional upgrade to a glass of Louis Roederer Champagne for a truly indulgent experience.

It’s all part of a chic lunar collaboration with Kaluga Caviar (from central China) which supplies 21 of the 26 three Michelin starred restaurants in Paris. Kaluga caviar offers a balance of luxury, flavour, and sustainability. Its rich, creamy texture and large pearls make it a close alternative to Beluga caviar with a lovely walnut aftertaste.

Even if you are a guest just for the day at Capella Sydney you can indulge your palate with a high tea that pairs Oscietra black caviar, from Russian Sturgeon stock, with champagne and traditional accompaniments.

Ask for the Capella Lunar New Year Afternoon Tea when you make you reservation, and take your place at the table. Each set comes with a 10g tin of Capella Sydney x Kaluga Queen Caviar.

Capella Sydney

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What It’s Like to Stay at Higashiyama Niseko Village, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, a one key Michelin Guide Hotel in The Heart of Japan’s Hokkaido ski fields.

This small ski lodge is a heart-starter hotel. By the end of your trip, you’ll be connected back to nature in both the spiritual and sporting sense.

By Belinda Aucott-christie 02/09/2024

Welcome to Checking In, a new review series in which our editors and contributors rate the best new (and revamped) luxury hotels based on a rigorous—and occasionally tongue-in-cheek—10-point system: Each question answered “yes” gets one point. Will room service bring you caviar? Does your suite have its own butler? Does the bathroom have a bidet? Find out below.

Higashiyama Niseko Village, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, Japan.

Describe the hotel in three words: Exclusive, relaxed and sophisticated.

What’s the deal?

On the page the hotel might sound a bit ordinary, but in reality it’s s anything but.

This is an all-season alpine resort at one of Japan’s top winter sports destinations in Hokkaido. The hotel opened in 2020 with little, to no, fanfare thanks to Covid, and it has two high seasons, one in summer and one in winter. 

Domestic tourists come for hiking and wilderness in summer and foreign tourists, who love skiing, come in the winter. YTL Hotels acquired Niseko Village for six billion yen (US$58m) in 2010 from PC One YK, a Japanese limited liability company, and they have made it one of their ultimate destination, nature reserve hotels.

The ski-in/ski-out destination’s main attraction is its accessibility to 2,191 acres of skiable terrain and extensive backcountry skiing, alongside an international ski school, chairlifts and gondolas. There is also a dining and retail venue and easy access to two world-class golf courses and an outdoor activity park for children. 

Now the 50-room Higashiyama Niseko Village, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve is the first Japanese Ritz-Carlton Reserve and YTL’s fifth destination in Niseko Village, residing at the base of Mount Niseko Annupuri.

Niseko Village has been selected as the venue for some of the 2030 Winter Olympics’ events; slalom, giant slalom, super-giant slalom (super-G) and downhill.

The hotel is sophisticated with panoramic mountain views. Having just 50 rooms it feels like a private home, with all the luxury you need to feel utterly spoilt. 

The Best Room

The largest family suite has plenty of room for a family of 4-5 persons, plus space for an au pair. It’s exactly the same layout as the suite, with the addition of a large walk-in-robe, dressing table and lounge room with a dining table. The lounge contains a fold out sofa, for babysitter, plus plenty of room for the children to relax in the hotel after a morning of skiing.

The Rundown

Did they greet you by name at check-in? 

Yes, fireside check-in happens in the Ume Lounge in a comfy seat next to 6-metre high windows overlong Mount Yotei. 

Was a welcome drink ready and waiting when you arrived? (Bonus points if it wasn’t just fruit juice).

Yes, we were welcomed by name with an exotic tea made from local flowers and herbs. I was more in the market for a whisky on this particular day, but the glass of Champagne at lunch of tempura and local sashimi at Yukibana more than made up for this.

Is there a private butler for every room?

Yes, the 24 hour do san concept it alive and well at this Ritz-Carlton Niseko and the message on check in is that nothing is too much trouble. 

Is the sheet thread count higher than 300?

Yes both the beds and the bed linen are incredible. They beds are fitted with white cotton sateen 400-thread count which literally feels like 600 after a day of skiing in the cold. 

The Ritz-Carlton hotel whites are all 100% cotton sateen. They are impeccably crafted of pure extra-long staple cotton sateen, these hotel linens are silky soft to the touch and have a lustrous look that catches the light. The bed is so comfortable you almost don’t want to leave.

Is there a heated floor in the bathroom? What about a bidet? No, bidet but the room and floor are heated. In fact sometimes the suite was too warm, when strolling around in ski gear. 

Are the toiletries full-sized?

Yes, everthing is French full-sized and created heritage beauty brand Sothys just as in the Chasi spa. Extra bath salts are provided daily to make up for the fact that Onsen waters aren’t piped up to the rooms.

Is there a private pool for the room’s exclusive use? How are the spa and gym?

No, private pool in the room but there is a private onsen which can be booked from the Sothy’s Chasi Spa. Both the spa and gym are state-of- the-art. Everything here is sweet smelling and super clean. 

Do you want to spend Friday night in the lobby bar?

Ume Lounge has a very elegant, minimal Armani Casa vibe. Think antler chandeliers, stacks of white birch logs, ceramics and camel pony skin rugs but it is not a party vibe.

You can easily spend at least one night by the fire after dinner reading from the library, but it is not the kind of place where you get carried away with friends. It’s soft lounge  lighting and high end food offering makes it feels small and intimate. The mood is enhanced by the excellent food and service at Yukibana. That said, it  didn’t stop some old college friends from getting stuck into bourbons one night for an evening at the bar.

Is there caviar on the room service menu? If so, what kind?

No, there is no caviar offered on in-room menu, but if you want a crab Eggs Benedict in bed, or prawn tempura you have come to the right place. Ditto the best raw sashimi you have ever eaten anywhere and incredible healthy food nails the east-meets-west twist at every turn. 

Would you buy the hotel if you could?

Yes, undoubtedly. I received more spa treatments and personalised attention in one weekend than I will probably have throughout the rest of my life.

Score: 8/10

What Our Score Means:

1-3: Fire your travel agent if they suggest you stay here.
4-6: Solid if you’re in a pinch—but only if you’re in a pinch.
7-8: Very good. We’d stay here again and recommend it without qualms.
9-10: Forget booking a week. When can we move in permanently?

Visit Ritz-Carlton Niseko

 

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This Rare BMW 507 Roadster Series II Could Fetch Over $3.2 Million at Auction

Only 252 examples of the convertible grand tourer were built during its four years in production.

By Bryan Hood 04/02/2025

There’s another BMW roadster you can buy if you don’t want to wait for the upcoming Skytop.

A stunning 1958 507 Roadster Series II will be auctioned off by RM Sotheby’s next month in Paris. Nearly seven decades after rolling off the line, the sleek two-door remains one of the best-looking vehicles ever built by the German luxury marque.

Like the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL and Porsche 356 Speedster before it, the 507 owes its existence to the American car importer Max Hoffman. In the mid-1950s, the businessman convinced BMW that American enthusiasts were eager for a convertible version of the 501 and 502 coupe. The plan was to build and ship thousands of examples of the open-top grand tourer to the U.S. each year, but an unexpectedly exorbitant sticker price sunk any chance the project had of catching on and only 252 cars would be built between 1956 and 1959.

Photo: Maximilian Vogl/RM Sotheby’s

The 507 offers up ample proof that (immediate) commercial success isn’t indicative of a vehicle’s worth. The roadster is easily one of the finest sports cars to come out of the post-war period. Its sophisticated design, which was penned by Albrecht von Goertz, combines smooth lines with the ideal proportions. But the 507 is more than just a car to be seen in. It also delivers more than respectable performance, thanks to a 3.2-litre V-8 that makes 111 kilowatts and pushes the vehicle to a top speed of 196 kph. It’s little wonder the car served as the inspiration for one of BMW’s most beloved modern-day models, the Z8.

Inside the 507 Roadster Series II Maximilian Vogl/RM Sotheby’s

The 507 that RM Sotheby’s is selling, chassis no. 70136, left the factory in Ivory White, and was shipped to Havana. It spent three decades in the Cuban capital before being returned to Germany in the late 1980s. In the years since, it was the recipient of a thorough restoration and was repainted in a glossy coat of black that matches its folding soft-top (there’s also a rare hard-top) and center-lock Rudge wheels. The interior—which because the car is a Series II example has more room—has grey leather seats and door cards. Just as striking is the period-correct is eight-cylinder under the hood. It may not be the numbers-matching original, but that mill comes with the lot too.

1958 BMW 507 Roadster Series II
Maximilian Vogl/RM Sotheby’s

The 507 Roadster will cross the block as part of RM Sotheby’s upcoming Paris sale, which will be held on February 4 and 5. The auction house has high hopes for the sports car, which is unsurprising considering its condition and rarity. It’s expected to sell for between $2.1 million and $3.2 million.

Click here for more photos of the 1958 BMW 507 Roadster Series II.

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How to Wear Linen Like a Style God (Don’t Sweat the Wrinkles)

Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about the essential summer textile, including how to care for it.

By Eric Twardzik 24/08/2024

Next to the fig leaf, linen might be humankind’s oldest covering. It’s turned up in the wrappings of Egyptian mummies and was even worn as armor by Alexander the Great. So how is it that modern men still son’t know quite what to make of it?

Anthony Keegan, creative director of the luxury essentials menswear brand Bugatchi, has a theory. “It’s a sophisticated material, and I don’t think you grow up wearing linen. It’s something the well-dressed man learns about.” But once the well-dressed man—or woman—becomes wise to its charms, it’s hard to go back.

Lilly Lampe’s aha moment with linen came while traveling in Southeast Asia during summertime. “It was this wake-up call that everything we’d read about linen was true,” she tells Robb Report. “It has amazing moisture-wicking properties and a beautiful, visually appealing natural texture. There are just so many reasons why it’s historically been a big part of warm weather garments, and also had other utilitarian uses throughout time.”

So impressed was Lampe that in 2015, she and her husband Alex Robins founded Blluemade, a unisex, workwear-inspired apparel line built around the fabric’s unique performance qualities.

How Does Linen Perform?

J. Mueser

Robins, who refers to linen as “ancient performance technology,” sees it as a natural alternative to engineered textiles. “It’s technical fabric from Egypt, in a way,” he tells Robb Report. Its ability to breathe easily, wick away moisture and dry quickly goes back to the cellular structure of flax (the plant from whic it is derived). Unlike cotton—which Robins likens to a “solid rod”—linen has a hollow core, which proves to be advantageous when wet. “It literally sucks up moisture like a straw,” he says.

Just don’t mistake the hollowness for fragility. Linens are also highly durable, a quality that made it the de-facto labor uniform for much of history. “Before the introduction of denim, it was the go-to workwear cloth,” Robins say.

What Makes Quality Linen

Crop of newly harvested golden flax stems left to dry under a warm French sun. Crop of newly harvested golden flax stems left to dry under a warm French sun. Getty Images

Not all linen is created equally. A key differentiating factor is the length of the fibers, with long flax fibers resulting in a stronger linen that’s softer and less prone to deep creasing, whereas short fibers render a textile more coarse and wrinkle-prone.

Blluemade’s linen comes exclusively from the Flanders region of Belgium, where a rainy, cloudy and temperate climate results in linen strands measuring between two and four feet. Lampe compares this to linen grown in drier and hotter environments, whose strands measure as little as two to four inches.

Other climes blessed (or perhaps cursed) with similar weather tend to produce quality linen, notably Ireland and the Normandy region of France.

Maison Hellard founder Nathan Hellard, whose eponymous firm turns Norman flax into tailor-ready linens, deploys an appropriately Gallic metaphor. “Just like wine, if you have good soil and a good amount of rain and sun, then you have the longest possible fiber in the end. And that’s the biggest difference between a low-quality linen and a high quality one,” he tells Robb Report.

Should you not have the opportunity to measure the strands yourself, Hellard says that quality can be detected visually, too. While linen is a naturally slubby textile, inferior linen will appear far slubbier and fuzzier due to their short fibers, whereas superior linen is smoother.

Will Linen Always Wrinkle?

Linen deconstructed blazer with patch pockets. Brunello Cuccinelli.

You can make linen from gold prize-winning flax and it will still wrinkle. That’s simply a product of how its strands meet together, and the fact that it is a vegetable fiber lacking the natural elasticity of wool.

“The wrinkles are part of the job,” says Keegan, laying out the facts. “And if you have been brainwashed into no wrinkles, period, then you’re going to have to grow into this.”

However, some linens will “bounce back” from wrinkles better than others. Lower quality or lighter weight linens are susceptible to long-lasting creases, whereas heavier linens and those made from longer fibers or with particular finishes will merely rumple rather than buckle. “It’s not that it won’t crease, it’s how it creases,” Hellard clarifies.

Linen’s wrinkle factor should be considered when forming an outfit. With a linen suit, Keegan prescribes a crisp oxford shirt to create contrast, and would avoid linen shirting and its resultant “wrinkle-on-wrinkle” effect. Jake Mueser, founder of the West Village tailor J. Mueser, nixes wool jackets with linen pants, but not its opposite. Mueser is an expert on wearing suiting in the summer without breaking a sweat.

“A crisp, light wool trouser with a linen jacket—that is a good combo,” he tells Robb Report.

How Does Linen Tailor?

Matthew Woodruff, creative director of J. Mueser, wearing an ivory linen suit from the tailor. J. Mueser

Mueser, whose Christopher Street atelier is thronged with linen suit-wearers in summer, highlights the choices available to those commissioning a linen suit.

“Like wool, there’s a lot of variety to linen. You can have a lighter weight, softer, more Italian linen that’s going to have more give and more wrinkle. You can have stiffer Irish linens, more washed and treated linens like Solbiati,” he says, referring to the linen-centric Italian mill purchased by Loro Piana in 2013. “There’s a big variation.”

Indeed, it’s the treated linens that increasingly make for interesting, paradigm-breaking commissions. To take just one example, the Hong Kong and Taipei-based tailor The Anthology has championed a “sueded” linen with a unique finish that leaves it soft to the touch on the exterior, yet crispy and springy on its reverse.

Anthology co-founder Buzz Tang in the brand’s sueded linen suit.
Anthology

“I think this specific linen is quite unique, because it sits right between the most traditional of Irish linens and the Italian ones,” says Anthology founder Buzz Tang. “It lends the Italian softness to the cloth, but at the same time, it still has a certain integrity in terms of drape and hang.”

An undeniable part of the fabric’s appeal at the present, dressed-down moment is its inherently casual appeal, a factor Mueser takes advantage of by often sporting his linen suits with a crewneck tee or Western shirt underneath. However, he doesn’t believe that it must be confined to the most casual side of tailoring and recalls seeing linen used in more structured suits and even dinner jackets to great success.

“Just because linen feels more casual, it doesn’t have to be patch pockets and deconstructed,” he says. “I think there’s a charm to taking linen and building it up more.”

Caring for Linen

Chalk stripe deconstructed linen blazer and leisure fit linen trousers. Brunello Cuccinelli.

For linen garments that can be machine washed, Lampe sounds a warning: no detergents with enzymes.

“If you spill ketchup or food on your clothes, it’ll eat away at that,” Lampe says of the additive’s advantages. “But linen is also natural, and so enzymes will eat away at that. And once you eat away at the outer lining of a hollow core material, you have a hole.”

In the interests of keeping linen hole-free, she instead recommends an enzyme-free detergent, such as the one produced by Le Blanc. For those taking the dry-cleaning route, Mueser suggests a similarly careful touch—perhaps skipping the actual dry cleaning altogether.

“I tell people all the time, take your suit to the dry cleaner, tell them to just steam it and press it. It comes back looking and feeling fresh and new, and it doesn’t need to have a chemical bath,” he says.

And finally: does a guaranteed-to-wrinkle garment ever need an ironing in the first place? Keegan says no. “I actually think it would be more of a steam than an iron… steaming is, for something like linen, a really good way to get it to its natural state.” That means crisp, cool, comfortable—and just the perfect amount of wrinkled.

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This Speedy New Personal Submarine Is Like an Underwater Supercar

Three times faster than most personal submersibles, U-Boat Worx’s Super Sub has a top speed of 10 knots.

By Michael Verdon 04/02/2025

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s Super Sub!

U-Boat Worx’s just-launched, ruby-red flagship may have more in common with the original 1950s Superman than the color of his cape. The Dutch submersible builder has released images of one of the world’s fastest personal subs, with maneuvering capabilities that should make it a natural for the next Bond movie.

The three-person submersible has a “droplet-shaped hull,” according to U-Boat Worx, and “advanced wing configurations” that deliver a top speed of 10 knots (most personal subs do about three knots and dolphins about seven knots) and the ability to make steep 45-degree climbs and sharp turns at depth. That’s like comparing the speed and maneuverability of a supercar to the family SUV. Besides basic forward, up, and down movements, the Super Sub can also move laterally, which gives it more precise handling on approaching objects like reefs or wrecks, or in a current.

“It’s a first-class ticket to explore the ocean like never before, combining speed, safety, and sophistication in every dive,” said U-Boat Worx marketing manager Roy Heijdra in a statement.

he design has the lithium batteries and thrusters at the rear so the pilot and passengers can enjoy the view. U-Boat Worx

Hyperbole aside, the Super Sub is an advanced design, starting with the cockpit, which has two front passenger seats behind the large acrylic bubble for exceptional viewing in all directions. The pilot is seated behind, so the guests or owners can enjoy the best view. The seats have five-point harness seatbelts because the ride can get kind of wild at full tilt.

The Super Sub’s touchscreen display shows all relevant navigational data as part of the U-Boat Worx Information System (UIS). Safety features such as Maximum Depth Protection, which prevents the sub from descending beyond its 300-metre (1,000-foot) depth limit, and the Deadman’s Switch (which a passenger can trigger to automatically ascend if the pilot is incapacitated) give some sense of the technology behind the design. The sub also has an “auto-heading” feature, equivalent to autopilot, which keeps the submersible on its current heading over long stretches.

The cockpit blends comfort and technology.
U-Boat Worx

Compared to the bubble look of most submersibles, this stealthy, cylinder-shaped vessel looks cool, with its large propellers and rear hydrofoils that combine to improve maneuverability. The thrusters, powered by an electric motor and 62 kWh lithium battery have a total power output of 100 kW—with enough juice to also power the air-conditioning.

The cylindrical shape is faster and more efficient than smaller, bubble-shaped personal subs.
U-Boat Worx

Beyond personal use, the speed and handling of the Super Sub could also make it a candidate for search and rescue and research missions.

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