Kite Towed Shipping

The ocean going ships of the world feel the pain at the pump just like everybody else. As the price of oil has gone up, so has the price of bunker fuel risen. Shipping companies interested in reducing fuel costs have experimented with various ways of improving fuel economy on their vessels. One such method is to use a large kite or parachute to tow the ship. Something like a sail, except the parachute flies at an altitude high above sea level. At these heights the wind speed is usually noticeably greater than at the sea surface. So the parachute has access to more wind than sails would. The video shows such a ship towing parachute in action.