BIG BOYZ TOYZ
Some of the largest
hovercraft in the world
are used by the military.
Ratty looks back at their
history and asks that all
important question:
can I buy one?
MILITARY
HOVERCRAFT
T
his issue I’ll break away from
land based hardware – well,
the sort with wheels at least.
As a kid I was fascinated with
machinery of all shapes and
sizes, mainly military stuff, though there was
another new form of transport which grabbed
my attention. It was the hovercraft. At that
time crossing the channel on a hovercraft
was the nautical equivalent of flying in
Concorde,or driving a Lamborghini Countach.
Hey, it was the 70s after all!
A hovercraft is basically a craft supported
by a cushion of slow-moving, high pressure
air which is forced against the surface
and contained within a ‘skirt’. This makes
the hovercraft unique as a form of ground
transport as it is able to travel equally well
over land, ice and water. Small hovercraft
have found a niche in the recreational/sports
market while large hovercraft are used in
both civilian and military applications. Giant
hovercraft have been used with success for
years as cross channel ferries and in military
roles as landing craft, able to transport large
equipment such as tanks, trucks and troops
across all types of hostile environments and
terrain. They are also used as emergency
response vehicles in affected areas after
natural disasters but, although supported by
air, a hovercraft is not an aircraft.
Brief history
The first air cushioned vehicle (ACV) was
built by an Austrian, Dagobert Muller. The
original design would not be recognisable as
a modern hovercraft. It was propelled by four
aero engines driving two submerged marine
propellers and had a fifth engine blowing air
under the front of the craft (to increase the air
pressure underneath it). The hull resembled
a large aerofoil and it was designed as a fast
torpedo boat, but never saw actual combat.
After the First World War, Konstantin
Eduardo Tsiolkovsky developed the theory
of moving an object on a cushion of air. In
1931 the first true hovercraft was designed
by Finnish aero engineer Toivo Kaario. This
design featured a lift engine, blowing air
into a flexible envelope for lift. ‘Surface
Soarer’ was the first prototype built in 1937
.
A Russian, Vladimir Levkov, closely followed
Kaarios’ work but his designs were based
more along Muller’s original aerofoil design.
The disaster craft Meulaboh brings supplies to devastated
communities in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami
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