I never really thought about how heavy equipment gets to remote locations. For instance, the giant cutters that they use logging when they are miles from a paved road. That stuff has to get there by helicopter often.

The problem is that the most powerful helicopter today can only lift 20 tons. Really heavy equipment simply can’t get where it’s needed at times today. A company called Skylifter has unveiled a new way to transport up to 150 tons of gear.

I am not a big fan of flying. Not because I am afraid the plane will crash or anything. I am afraid I will be stuck next to the 400-pound dude with a sweating problem. The last time I flew on a commercial flight that happened to me and it was a miserable three hours.

Apparently the airlines think we have too much room in those small seats. A company has unveiled new seats called SkyRider that look like a cross between a normal airline seat and a saddle. The seats give you only 23-inches of legroom.

Leigh Aerosystems’ latest concept is the “High Road.” A new kind of flying car. The High Road has already completed initial wind tunnel tests at the San Diego Air and Space Museum’s 12-foot tunnel with great success, which led to more detailed mechanical and structural design.

Some of the operational and performance goals for this aerocar include a 180 mph cruise speed at 15,000 ft., 20,000 ft ceiling and a 500-mile range. Sure, it will cost a fortune when it sees the light of day, but the rest of those poor suckers will be on the ground and you’ll be flipping them the bird while tossing empty red bull cans on skyscraper roofs.

Since 2004, the Hotelicopter project has been underway. So for 5 years they’ve been working on modifying a Soviet-made Mil V-12 into the “world’s biggest helicopter” and at the same time, the “world’s first flying hotel. It’s an amazing piece of work, like a double-decker bus for the skies.

It’s the ultimate in luxury air travel, with private entertainment systems and room service. Plus you get extras like spa treatments, yoga classes, gaming and a tea garden. To give you some idea of it’s size, check out the specs below.

If dinosaurs waged war with our technology this is what the helicopter might look like. The Triceracopter is half Triceratops, half helicopter. It was originally built as a sculpture in 1977 by artist Patricia Renick, but now it’s available to the likes of you and I.

The Triceracopter is all about the “Hope for the Obsolescence of War,”. Makes sense I guess, since a triceratops can’t fly and is extinct. When I look at it I don’t see the obsolescence of war. I see an awesome dinosaur helicopter that would surely lay waste to anything in it’s sights. A helicopter that can rain death from above, then land and walk into a ground assault. Maybe that’s just me.

Garmin added today a couple of new full function multi-function displays for those enjoying the light sport retrofit and experimental aircraft markets. The GDU 370 and GDU 375 are set to be available this March for around $3,300 and $4,000, respectively.

Garmin says these new seven-inch, portrait displays are designed to be viewable day or night. A variety of controls are built into these displays. For example, dedicated keys on the display’s right side have specific functions such as nearest, direct to, flight plan, zoom in/out and menu. The backs of these MFDs also have connection ports for external GPS and XM antennas, and a 50-pin connector for power/ground and interfaces.

They did ground tests last week, but yesterday morning WhiteKnightTwo, the strange looking double-wide plane that will carry SpaceShipTwo and its cargo on suborbital spaceflights, finally took off on its maiden voyage. Four Pratt & Whitney Canada PW308A engines carried the craft into the air.

The flight didn’t last long, just under an hour, and apparently all went perfectly according to plan. The design is pretty amazing and makes we realize that we may just be living in the beginning of Star Trek times, at long last. Soon they’ll be building the Enterprise in orbit.

What might the future of flight look like? The folks at Finnair have a pretty good idea. They have five future aircraft concepts for the year 2093. As you might expect, all the aircrafts are eco-friendly and materials used in the making are 100 percent recyclable. I have to say they look awesome.

How about a zero-emission supersonic aircraft, designed for long-hauls? AV windows that offer zoomable views of the sky or the earth? How about a charter aircraft with turning engines in front that can glide and take-off vertically? Some even feature hologram theaters, restaurants, and bars, shops, a beauty parlor, a first-aid station, and gymnasiums. The future of flight is looking pretty awesome. I’d be willing to bet that most of their ideas will be realized by 2093.

The Martin Jetpack is defined by the FAA as an “experimental ultralight airplane, equipped with a gas-powered, V-4 piston engine and two ducted fans that provide the lift.” The jetpack was unveiled among an enthusiastical crowd in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. It will allow the flyer to hover for about 30 minutes and rise to 8,000 feet.

It will cost you $100,000 and you’ll have to complete 15 hours of flight training as well as undergo a “safety screening.” I’m getting flashbacks of 70′s TV. Back when it seemed that everyone used a jetpack in at least one episode of their show. I can just see that trend being revived today. How would you like to see House tossing his cane and taking off? Video below.

The newest addition to in-flight luxuries are in-flight showers. Obviously, it’s great for the businessman on the go. You could arrive at your destination squeaky clean. Emirates airline has just announced their ‘shower spas’ facility for first-class passengers(Of course) in their new superjumbo A380 Airbus.

Yes, the plane really carries enough water for all 14 First Class passengers to have five-minute showers, so don’t worry they won’t be recycling anything nasty. Each shower has been designed to accommodate just one person at a time, but I’m sure the mile-high club just got an upgrade. Other premium services include 14 flat-bed, massage-equipped ‘Private Suites’, each of which include remote controlled doors, work desk, electrically controlled mini-bar and an entertainment system. Nice!

The WhiteKnightTwo is the aircraft that will launch SpaceShipTwo into suborbital space. Today in the Mojave desert, those who are still dreaming the dream unveiled the top-secret craft. The craft’s first job is to serve as a flight simulator next month for pilots. Pilots that will shuttle citizens into space and usher in a new era of space travel. Assuming everything goes as planned, it should begin flight testing at the end of September. Except for the engines and landing gear, the entire craft is made from carbon fiber composite.

According to Virgin Galactic, both ships will be ready for their first flight together in 2009 or 2010. Fittingly, Richard Branson and his family will be the first onboard. The space flight lasts 2.5-hours with five minutes of weightlessness before the ship comes back to Earth.

Generally things with wheels don’t leave the ground. Of course, there were the flying motorcycles of Galactica 1980, but that was fiction. Very bad fiction.

Here’s a single seat motorbike/tricycle that lets you ride on the open road and when traffic gets too congested, you can just take to the skies and arrive at work in style. It uses of propeller blades like a helicopter and can reach flying speeds of 160 km/h and land speeds of 90 km/h. The only problem is that we are going to have to rethink garage design and put gas stations on rooftops.

Harbin Smart Special Aerocraft is a Chinese company that’s developed a flying saucer capable of climbing up to 1,000 yards at a speed of 50 mph. It can remain in the air for about 40 minutes.

The company spent 12 years and $4.1 million dollars to develop the flying saucer, but they abducted no one. Honest. Hopefully we Americans and the Russians will get in on the act too. That way, we can perfect the Flying Saucer and give some payback to alien worlds. Let’s see how they like the ole anal probe!

This beauty will cost you $139,000 and it can take off and land on water and/or dry land. The controls are more like a car than an airplane, which should make it easy for you to get around. It’s fold up wings make it easy to store this baby in a garage or even tow it behind your car while on vacation. It has a 32 foot wingspan otherwise. It should be available for sale in 2010.

It’s the ideal vehicle for the traveler of the future. Remember, we were supposed to be flying around in our own planes by now. The plane conforms to the FAA’s new Light Sport Aircraft category, which means that it’s restricted to flying in daylight, under 10,000 feet with a top speed of 140mph. I’m sure it’s a breeze to learn how to fly it, since you can get the Pilot License required to fly it with about 20 hours of flight training. Awesome. I’m gonna go clean the garage.

A strange new aircraft is a bit closer to take-off with the announcement that the FAA has accepted the type certification application for the Aeroscraft model Aeros ML866. It looks like some sort of flying whale, though it’s described as a new paradigm in air transport. At 210 ft long, 118 ft wide, the ML866 is a buoyancy assisted air vehicle with a rigid structure that generates lift through aerodynamics, thrust vectoring and gas buoyancy.

The craft boasts a range of more than 3000 miles and a top speed of 138mph, plus it has some unique properties for a craft of its size. Like the ability to hover, take-off and land vertically, along with complete autonomy from airports. It is now officially a new type of aircraft.