Billy Thalheimer
@billythalheimer
Co-founder & CEO at REGENT: Building the future of electric transportation one seaglider at a time http://regentcraft.com
Seaglider: enter foiling mode Huge step for the @regentcraft team - progressing quickly through our Seaglider test campaign! Stay tuned for more as we put the Viceroy prototype through her paces
.@SECNAV, thank you for stopping by and flying our Seaglider simulator at @reindsummit—it was an honor to spend time with you. Your vision for the future of naval maritime power is inspiring, and it’s clear you understand that the challenges facing our Navy today demand bold and…
At @reindsummit 2.0 this week, I met with leaders driving the future of American manufacturing and maritime innovation. Rebuilding our industrial base is a strategic imperative. The clock is ticking. Today, our shipyards are too few. Our industrial workforce is shrinking. Our…
Our Squire Seaglider gets up to about 38 kts on its hydrofoils making it the fastest foiling boat under 500lbs on the planet! And that is before it takes off... The Moth performance sailboat has only hit about 36 kts. Our controls and actuation teams are absolutely cooking
Wave tolerance IRL? Our 350 lb "Squire" Seaglider has been there, done that. This was a whitecap day with 1-1.5ft waves and wind gusts north of 15 kts. Squire is 1/4 the scale of the Viceroy human-crewed Seaglider we are testing today at @regentcraft. With the proof-point…
Inside look at the REGENT Seaglider sea trial campaign!
Watch the REGENT crew describe Seaglider prototype sea trials: #letsgo #floatfoilfly #engineering #careers #seatrials #datafirst
Super relevant now as we’re back into sea trials and hydrofoil testing
Retractable hydrofoils provide wave tolerance & ensure a comfortable ride for passengers. REGENT's co-founder & CEO, @billythalheimer breaks down this unique element of our design & why foiling is an important part of seaglider operations. #floatfoilfly #seagliders #hydrofoil
We asked @billythalheimer (Co-Founder & CEO @regentcraft) about the strategic importance of sea gliders in defense. "Our commercial customers like high-speed, low-cost Seagliders." "In the DoD space, they're hard to detect, flying low over water." "They're perfect for naval…
Wave tolerance IRL? Our 350 lb "Squire" Seaglider has been there, done that. This was a whitecap day with 1-1.5ft waves and wind gusts north of 15 kts. Squire is 1/4 the scale of the Viceroy human-crewed Seaglider we are testing today at @regentcraft. With the proof-point…
Introducing: Made in America A Sourcery Mini-Series born at @reindsummit Detroit featuring 20+ of the most important leaders in American progress
I've flown on TMA at least a dozen times and thankfully never experienced it quite as rough as that, although I landed once on a stopover and after 5 minutes bobbing up and down started to feel very seasick. These squalls can pick up in minutes so the pilots are experienced.
Reducing maintenance is the key to the Seaglider business model! ⚙️ The driving cost of short haul aviation is maintenance cost because aircraft age cyclicly. - Engines heat up and cool down - Fuselage expand and contract - Landing gear impact runways The shorter the route, the…
Would be cool to see a Seaglider last twice as long than a traditional sea plane. Depreciation matters to buyers. Any thoughts on maintenance costs? And all-in fuel costs?
Great piece on the Reindustrialize movement - plus an excellent highlight of the spacious interior of @regentcraft's Seaglider!
My latest piece about the movement to Reindustrialize America: “You can’t really offer your citizens much,” he said, “if all you’re asking them to do is sit around, trade crypto, watch Netflix and order Uber Eats.” @reindsummit nytimes.com/2025/07/20/us/…
When your "flying boat" gets a mention in the @nytimes article on @reindsummit ... We're proud to be part of the movement to revive American manufacturing and bolster national security. 🛠️ 🇺🇸
Proud to be an 8090 Industries portco - these guys hustle @GaruthAcharya @gbthevc @RayyanIslam1
Watch Video: Welcome to “@regentcraft Defence, U.S Seaglider Addresses National Security Need” evtolinsights.com/2025/07/watch-…
Found one of the Shinmeywa US-2! Still pretty flat on that hull... Still needs to get up on the step and plane to takeoff, which means landings in high sea state are still pretty sketchy.
It all comes down to hull design. Seaplanes and flying boats have flat, planing hulls. You can see how they skim over the surface at speed. By contrast, Seagliders hulls have a very aggressive deep-V shape. In flight, the hydrofoils are retracted and the Seaglider lands on…
Another great point! We talk a lot about wave tolerance as a key differentiators of Seagliders vs sea planes, but maintenance cost is every bit as important. Sucking in that salt spray into the engine intake takes and already expensive aircraft and doubles to triples the…
that salt spray at 0:02 can't be good for the PT6A.
Lots of people have been citing the Shinmeywa US-2 as able to takeoff and land in 3m / 9ft seas because it says it can do so on their website. First off, the US-2 is a pretty awesome flying boat. It's STOL capability and wave tolerance is no doubt supremely impressive. BUT - I…
A seaplane pushing wave tolerance to its max. 🌊 Check out this Twin Otter in its max sea state of about 2 ft. Bouncing and bobbing over the waves until it just barely gets airborne, and that’s only because of a significant headwind. Landing in these conditions would be even…