Application of hovercraft

The working principle of hovercraft is to use a high-power fan to quickly press a large amount of air into the bottom of the hull, so that a high-pressure air mass is formed between the bottom of the hull and the water surface, and some or even all of the hull is lifted off the water surface. This is like adding a flowing air cushion between the hull and the water surface, which reduces the resistance of water to the hull, so that the ship can travel at high speed on the water surface and land on the beach and other interfaces. The forward power of hovercraft is generally obtained by blowing air backwards by the fan on board, just like the propeller power device used in early airplanes. Hovercraft has many excellent characteristics, such as high speed, small sound field, magnetic field and pressure field, good concealment and strong adaptability. It is especially suitable for landing transportation in landing operations. But there are also some shortcomings, mainly short voyage, large oil consumption and low economic benefits.

The picture on the right shows the British Griffin 500TD military hovercraft preparing to land.

Hovercraft has many excellent characteristics, which make it widely used in the military. At present, the main aspects of its military application are:

Transport landing force

The full-cushion hovercraft has the ability of high speed and landing. It can not only sail at a certain height from the water surface, but also land on flat terrain such as beaches, mudflats, swamps, water-net paddy fields, ice and snow fields, and can cross obstacles equivalent to about 70% of the height of the hovercraft apron at a certain speed, and cross trenches equivalent to one-third of the width of the hull, which can adapt to most coastal environments. According to the research of the U.S. military, when using hovercraft as a landing transportation tool, it can land on about 75% of the coastline in the world, which shows that hovercraft has very strong adaptability to landing areas. When the hovercraft is used as a landing vehicle, it has many advantages compared with the traditional drainage vehicle. First of all, the hovercraft can directly transport the landing soldiers through the mud on the beach or coast to the land, which not only improves the landing speed, reduces the landing impact distance of the landing soldiers, and shortens the exposure time to enemy beach fire, but also can cross quite a number of natural and artificial landing obstacles, making the selection of landing points wider and more flexible. In addition, the difficulty of choosing tidal time in the traditional landing mode is basically eliminated, and full tidal landing can be realized, which makes the choice of landing time more flexible and increases the initiative of landing. Therefore, hovercraft is an ideal means of transportation for landing operations, which is favored by amphibious combat troops in many countries and widely used in amphibious combat troops in many countries.

The picture on the right shows the landing operation of the Canadian Airbus Pioneer V- 18 military hovercraft.

Minesweeping and breaking obstacles

Hovercraft can run mostly or completely out of the water, and its own characteristics such as magnetic field and pressure field are not obvious. Obstacles in the water generally have no or little influence on it, and explosives in the water are not easy to be detonated by it. For example, traditional obstacles and some beach obstacles don't work on the hovercraft. Generally, mines don't explode when the hovercraft passes by, or even explode in the water near the hovercraft, and their damage to the hovercraft is much smaller than that of the drainage type, because the air cushion under the hovercraft can reduce the impact of the explosion shock wave in the water to a certain extent. Taking advantage of this, we can also use hovercraft as a mine-sweeping platform and carry mine-sweeping tools for mine-sweeping. As the transport platform and working platform of the obstacle-breaking unit, the hovercraft can save a lot of sailing time because of its high speed, and it can also use its obstacle-breaking characteristics to transport the obstacle-breaking unit freely in the obstacle area, so that it can adopt flexible and diverse segmentation methods to speed up the obstacle-breaking operation process and improve the obstacle-breaking efficiency.

The picture on the right shows the modern American 1874 military hovercraft patrolling the border.

As a weapon platform

As a means of transportation, hovercraft has many advantages: high speed, little influence by sea conditions such as waves, low hull and good concealment. Using hovercraft to carry anti-ship missiles for anti-ship operations can often achieve the effect of surprise attack. Some military experts believe that the anti-ship capability of small hovercraft loaded with anti-ship missiles can even be comparable to that of missile frigates with a displacement of 2,000-3,000 tons. In addition, because the hovercraft sails out of the water, its noise characteristics are small, it is not easy to be found by submarines, and the submarine's effective attack ability is limited, so it is a good anti-submarine platform. The hovercraft with relatively large tonnage can also be used as a fast mobile fire support platform to implement fire support.

Right: British Griffin 1050TD military hovercraft is transporting the Marine Corps.

Other military uses

Hovercraft has a fast sailing speed, and it is a good way to transport logistics materials in some specific occasions (such as when it is far away from ports and docks). In addition, it also has great advantages in searching and rescuing the wounded at sea. On the one hand, the search and rescue speed is fast, and it can effectively search a wide range of sea areas in a short time. On the other hand, the rescue is convenient, and it can stop directly at the sea surface, which is easier than hovering by helicopter, and is much less disturbed by the environment, and can adapt to higher sea conditions. In addition, hovercraft can also be used as a platform tool for rapid mine laying, which has many unique advantages compared with conventional ships.

The picture on the right shows the U.S. military HG 1000 hovercraft performing the military supply mission.

China has not given up the research on hovercraft, especially the research on the military application of large hovercraft. It is believed that in the near future, the domestic large-scale air-cushion landing ship will be successfully developed and publicly unveiled.

Right: British Griffin 8 100TD military hovercraft patrols offshore. Rescue service agencies around the world believe that hovercraft can quickly fly over water, thin ice or broken ice, floods and snow, and carry out fast and safe search and rescue operations. It is the only high-speed and effective rescue platform in special environment such as swamp or beach. Because the hovercraft can fly or land safely on the terrain suspended below 2/3 of the cushion skirt, the above rescuers can go to areas that can't be reached by conventional rescue boats or vehicles to perform rescue tasks.

The picture on the right shows the American "Hyundai" 3626 hovercraft performing a rescue mission.

When the geographical environment around the airport near the coast or swamp is complex, hovercraft is often the only platform that can provide rescue services in these areas. These unique high-speed ships are equipped with comprehensive fire-fighting and life-saving equipment and can be dispatched in almost any emergency. Airports using "rescue hovercraft" are: Singapore International Airport, Auckland International Airport, Dundee Airport (UK) and Shannon Airport (Ireland). The picture on the right shows the British "Griffin" 2400TD rescue hovercraft on standby at Dundee Airport.

In some of the most remote and inaccessible corners, hovercraft is the only solution to obtain medical clinics and materials. The hovercraft can provide clean, safe and spacious rooms, and can be equipped with complete sets of the latest medical equipment to meet the requirements of diagnosis and treatment, thus forming an ideal mobile medical clinic. The United Nations World Food Program, which works in Sudan, uses hovercraft to carry out refugee rescue operations in frozen lakes and mudflats. The World Red Cross uses American hovercraft to help rescue disaster areas and highlands.

Time is of the essence in the rescue. "craft" rescue hovercraft HG 1000 is loaded by trailer, which can be loaded and unloaded within 30 seconds, and can be easily towed by standard cars, which is convenient to use and quick to deploy. It can fly or land to flooded areas and rescue areas such as mud, ice and low temperature quickly without expensive transportation needs and expenses. HG 1000 hovercraft has sufficient power, and the rescue speed can reach 7 km/h, and the rescue configuration can be increased, such as searchlights, lifting points, GPS and radio stations.

The picture on the right shows the British "Griffin" 8000TD hovercraft performing medical rescue mission.

The importance of ice rescue hovercraft lies in that hovercraft flies over thick or thin ice slag, rescues drowning people in a few minutes and then returns safely.

However, the prominent role of hovercraft in flood situation is little known. When floods break out and rivers break through dams and residential areas, it is almost impossible to use a boat to drive along underwater obstacles such as flooded streets, fences, fallen trees, flooded walls and vehicles, because it will damage the propeller of the boat. The hovercraft is completely unaffected by underwater obstacles and can fly in any water depth.

Because of the shallow water, large ships can't enforce the law along the coastline, while hovercraft can be used all year round. More importantly, when law enforcement officers check illegal immigrants and smuggling, hovercraft can chase from the water to the beach, along muddy or sandy coastlines and beach areas.

The picture on the right shows the rescue operation of the British "Griffin" rescue hovercraft at the seaside. Imagine having your own leisure travel hovercraft to go on vacation!

Hovercraft is different from any other personal water sports equipment, cross-country bike, jet boat or personal boat, which provides you with more fun. Not only that, the hovercraft is easy to use and provides unparalleled excitement, which anyone who seeks excitement can't wait!

Hovercraft provides unknown freedom. After trying individual cross-country bicycles or four-wheel drive vehicles, hovercraft is the most versatile and unique ship, which can fly or land on many complex terrain. A new era is coming, that is, the leisure time of hovercraft now! Owning a hovercraft means you can have a good time. Rapidly flowing rapids, shallow rivers, estuaries, swamps and sand islands are no longer obstacles in your journey, but new areas for you to discover, explore and entertain! You don't have to own a boat, kayak, rowing boat, jet boat, motorboat and snowmobile. What you need is a hovercraft-a four-season leisure boat with all the functions. The hovercraft takes you to the place you've always wanted to go, but you can never go before. The versatility of hovercraft is incredible, which gives endless new personal opportunities and activities. Freedom! Imagine going where you want to go-beach, concrete, desert, ocean, coral reef, river, lake, even snow or ice! Fly to land, compete, go wild fishing, take photos in wetlands, explore and hunt, and so on. Hovercraft allows you to do all this.

One of the most amazing functions of hovercraft is that its performance is exactly the same from one surface to another-imagine your own personal hovercraft flying straight from the water to the beach at full speed and then to the surface! Remember, you will attract the audience and make all the owners of speedboats, motorboats and other boats look envious!

Use your hovercraft imagination to go where no one can go! Don't forget, hovercraft don't need to spend time looking for and paying for berths or docks.

Hovercraft has opened up a whole new world-personal choice, built for the ideals of all families. The hovercraft is adaptable enough to satisfy everyone's ideas. You can use hovercraft: leisurely cruise, easy sliding in ice and water, quick fun, exploring new places, relaxing in winter, or taking your friends and family on a trip.

The picture on the right shows the application of American "modern" hovercraft in leisure tourism. Hovercraft is widely used in business and can provide you with demand response and flexible solutions. The main application fields are:

Patrol tasks, oil exploration, ice breaking and anti-icing, forestry management, island meteorology and commercial fishing.

Environmental protection, wildlife protection, investigation, gold mining, biological research, oil pollution cleaning.

Customs anti-smuggling, agricultural spraying, flood control and disaster relief, ice transportation, hydrological survey and wetland protection.

Coastal scientific research, fishery duty, forestry duty, wind detection, scientific archaeology, etc-

Commercial hovercraft will help you fly or land in terrain where off-road vehicles or ships can't enter work:

Beaches, swamps, wetlands, snow, rapids, beaches, asphalt roads and ice.

Mud, grassland, desert, Liu Ling, roads and water.

The picture on the right shows the American "craft" HG700 hovercraft in the measurement work.