Dear Visitors to The Hovercraft Society,
The year has started with a new SES in service – an Aircat Crewliner 35 has begun service in Angola to an offshore oil production FPSO. It is the first of three that will deliver personnel on a regular basis, improving logistics for the production company. We will have full details in our January News Note at the end of the month that will be sent to members of THS by email and loaded on this site in the members area.
There is a lot going on at present. Mark Downer has taken over as Managing Director of Griffon Hoverwork Ltd from Adrian Went at the beginning of the year. Previously Mark was the Engineering Director. Adrian is stepping back while continuing as a consultant. He has been key to the company’s success over the last decade and more.
At the British Hovercraft Company, they are finalising design/construction of a revised BHC700 craft and are also testing a fully electric integrated light craft model. When this latter model hits the streets, it should be a game changer for the recreational craft market.
The Technical Secretary has got back to work after the Christmas and New Year break, adding yet another conference to the Members Library. This one is a joint conference held in 1985 that features 5 papers including an overview of the Wartsila ‘Larus’ that carried out test operations in the Canadian arctic, after several years’ service for the Finnish Government in the Northern Baltic as a year-round ferry.
Another historical paper from 1995 has also been added documenting the first 21 years of Hovermarine SES operations in Hong Kong that was presented to THS at a lecture evening.
THS has been given approval to publish the CAA paper 97008 that documents a long research programme in UK on stability limits for amphibious craft. This work followed a number of early craft overturns when skirt stability was lost when craft were travelling partly sideways. A methodology is presented in the report to determine the limits for bag and finger and loop/segment designs. Work will begin shortly to turn the tables and graphs in this report into spreadsheets for easier evaluation.
Having established a page for Skirt Design and Stability with the CAA paper as the first item, other technical papers addressing this topic will be added as time goes on.
Finally, news of an ice rescue using a Neoteric hovercraft (there are many in service in the USA and other countries. The below report is by Chloe Forbes of the Meadville Tribune, with thanks.
The Crawford County Scuba Team broke the ice with its new hovercraft during an ice rescue mission early Monday 23rd December 2024. The rescue was the first emergency call the hovercraft has been used for since it became part of the team in July.
Conneaut Lake Volunteer Fire Department was dispatched at 5:34 a.m. for the rescue when three duck hunters got trapped in the lake. “They tried breaking through to gain access to where they wanted to hunt, and that’s when the canoe got tippy,” said John Treacy, the department’s chief. “Part of it was on the ice, and it tipped over in the water. It filled up partially with water and they couldn’t make it back to their starting point.”
The temperature was about 10 degrees (Fahrenheit), according to Treacy, and the ice was a few inches thick. He said two firefighters donned ice suits and tried to wade out to the canoe, but the ice was too soft. The hovercraft then was called in, arriving at 6:18. “When they got there, they were able to gain access to the victims, get them loaded one at a time, bring them back to shore — the starting point — and on the last trip were able to secure a rope to the canoe, and we were able to haul it back,” the chief said.
The first hunter was brought to shore by 6:28 and the last was back at 6:37. Conneaut Lake firefighters were back in service at 8:05. The hunter who had fallen in the water was checked out on-scene and didn’t require further medical attention. Assisting Conneaut Lake Volunteer Fire Department were West Mead 1 Volunteer Fire Department, West Mead 2 Volunteer Fire Department who brought the hovercraft to site, and Meadville Area Ambulance Service. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission was also at the scene.
Treacy said that without the hovercraft, it would’ve taken at least another hour to perform the rescue. Still, after the incident there were other parties out on the lake, despite the thinness and softness of the ice. “People try to get out there, and it’s not ready yet,” Treacy said.
Chloe Forbes can be reached at (814) 724-6370 or by email at cforbes@meadvilletribune.com
Photos below of the Rescue hovercraft Team, and the incident ongoing, courtesy Meadville Tribune.
For information on our privacy policy please click on the Button
