Inside the world's largest aircraft, which is set to have glass floors and take wealthy travellers on luxury 3-day expeditions

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Inside the world's largest aircraft, which is set to have glass floors and take wealthy travellers on luxury 3-day expeditions

The Airlander 10 hybrid airship makes its maiden flight at Cardington Airfield in Britain, August 17, 2016. REUTERS/Darren Staples

REUTERS / Darren Staples

The Airlander 10 hybrid airship.

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  • The world's largest aircraft has revealed its interiors - and they're extremely luxurious.
  • Airlander 10 is a 300-foot hybrid airship that plans to take travelers on three-day excursions.
  • The airship features en-suite bedrooms, a bar, and a lounge area.
  • There's also glass flooring so people can take in the views from 16,000 feet.


Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's a hybrid airship!

The world's largest aircraft unveiled plans for its interiors at Farnborough Airshow last week - and they look stunning.

Airlander 10 hybrid airship interior

Hybrid Air Vehicles / Design Q

Nicknamed "The Flying Bum" because of its posterior-shaped hull, Airlander 10 is part-plane, part-airship, part-helicopter, built by Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV). The £25 million ($33 million) aircraft is 302 feet long, making it about 60 feet longer than the world's largest passenger plane, the Airbus A380, which spans nearly 240 feet.

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HAV plans to take up to 19 passengers on three-day excursions on the Airlander 10, and it looks like they're in for a treat on board.

The interiors were developed in collaboration with Design Q, a UK-based design consultancy.

Airlander 10 features luxurious en-suite bedrooms, an "Altitude Bar," and a spacious lounge area.

Airlander 10 hybrid airship interior

Hybrid Air Vehicles / Design Q

The most exciting feature of the interior design is the glass flooring, which will allow passengers to take in the horizon-to-horizon views from 16,000 feet.

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Airlander 10 hybrid airship interior

Hybrid Air Vehicles / Design Q

Though it may be bigger than the A380, it's certainly not as fast - the Airlander's top speed is just 91 mph compared to the A380's cruising speed of 560 mph.

The Airlander is not about getting to places quickly, though. The luxury aircraft is instead designed to revive the joy of flight as an experience rather than a means of transport.

Airlander 10 hybrid airship interior

Hybrid Air Vehicles / Design Q

Stephen McGlennan, CEO of HAV, said in a press release: "Airlander challenges people to rethink the skies - that's the driving force behind everything we do.

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"Air travel has become very much about getting from A to B as quickly as possible. What we're offering is a way of making the journey a joy."

However, it's not always been plain sailing for the world's largest aircraft.

In 2016, the giant airship crashed into a telegraph pole and nosedived on its second test flight.

In 2017, Airlander 10 collapsed before take-off less than 24-hours after a successful test flight. Two people suffered minor injuries.

Part of the collapsed airship Airlander 10 is seen in Bedfordshire, Britain November 18, 2017 in this picture obtained from social media.

Rob Fletcher / via REUTERS

Part of the collapsed airship Airlander 10 is seen in Bedfordshire, Britain November 18, 2017 in this picture obtained from social media.

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The giant airship has now completed six successful test flights, but it will need to complete a total of 200 incident-free hours in the sky before it is allowed to take on commercial passengers.

We can wait.

Get the latest Boeing stock price here.

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