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What happened to giant hovercraft? [video]
- Tsiklon 4y agoThe ferocious noise from a hovercraft is something to behold. And the craft I’ve seen aren’t nearly the size of the ones that hopped the British channel. I’d love to see one of the leviathans the US (LCAC) and Russian (Zubr class) Military use (on friendly terms)
- CobaltFire 4y agoSpeaking an an ex-LCAC crew member: if you happen to be in San Diego at the right time ACU-5 usually has a day or two where they show them to the public every year. You can search it out. ACU-4 on the east coast may as well but I’m not as sure. NBU-7 in Japan may but it’s not a regular thing, and the Japanese LCACs aren’t really shown to the public. Can’t speak to others.
- registeredcorn 4y agoHere's a video of ACU-4 from zuckbook: https://www.facebook.com/100064763254105/videos/pcb.398687725633333/427340325697315 https://www.facebook.com/100064763254105/videos/pcb.39868772...
- imglorp 4y agoCaution, this link wipes your browser back-button stack. I don't know how that's allowed by browsers and standards, but it's super hostile.
- registeredcorn 4y agoYikes! Didn't know that. Thanks for the heads up.
- totetsu 4y agoDo these things have to worry about sea mines?
- CobaltFire 4y agoBut they are primarily made of aluminum and the force they exert is low if they are "on cushion", so the older pressure wave/magnetic types likely won't trigger. There are some newer types that would trigger, however.
- midislack 4y agoThey still exist in Russia of course.
- the_biot 4y agoThe video goes along with what you might assume of a hovercraft: that you're calmly floating to your destination on a cushion of air, like a flying carpet from a fairy tale. In reality they were super loud and everything vibrated, the entire time. Not so much flying carpet, more like getting strapped to the outside of an airplane.
- simonh 4y agoI only went across the channel in one of these once, but loved it. Much more comfortable than the catamaran for example, which I found much more juddery. In any case the massive mechanical cool of these things was awesome to see. It was like stepping into the world of Thunderbirds. No video can give the same experience.
- the_biot 4y agoThere was a catamaran? And I thought I'd done them all (ferry, hovercraft, jetfoil, tunnel, airplane)!
- leephillips 4y agoYou didn’t swim it? Lame.
- eesmith 4y agoI don't think "lame" is an appropriate slur. Especially as John Maclean, a paraplegic, swam the Channel back in 1998. What other regularly schedule commercial services have there been? The last airship service probably stopped in the 1930s. Helicopter passenger (scheduled, not charter) was a thing in the 1960s and 1970s, but the closest I've found to the Channel was a Penzance/Scillies route from the 1970s at https://www.ashpole.org.uk/british-airways-helicopters-penzanceisles-of-scilly/ https://www.ashpole.org.uk/british-airways-helicopters-penza... . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_helicopter_airlines https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_helicopter_airlines doesn't list any current services.
- drcongo 4y agoSemi-related question: The VO on that video pronounces "hover" as "huvver" - is this a normal thing in the US, or regional? I ask, because I must have heard podcast ads for hover.com maybe 50 times before I eventually realised that it was "hover", and even then that was only because I saw them mentioned on here.
- ljp_206 4y agoAs a West-coast American, I have only ever heard 'hover' as "huvver."
- mikestew 4y agoI've lived all over the U. S., and I can only offer a question: how else would you pronounce it if not "huvver"? Rhymes with "over" or "stove" is the only alternative I can come up with, and that can't be right (having never heard that pronunciation leave anyone's lips).
- tjader 4y agohttps://youtu.be/13Eefjvd1A4?t=2269 https://youtu.be/13Eefjvd1A4?t=2269 Here's an example of a pronunciation with a more open first vowel. Wiktionary says that's usual in UK, /ˈhɒ.və(ɹ)/ vs /ˈhʌ.vɚ/ in the US.
- drcongo 4y agoThanks, I wish I could read those pronunciations.
- justsomehnguy 4y agoOh come on! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/English https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/English
- jazzyjackson 4y agomight as well link to the wikipedia on how to pronounce pinyin that article doesn't explain ɚ at all, btw
- CommieBobDole 4y agoI don't know about other people's giant hovercraft, but mine sank after it was somehow filled with eels.
- 2OEH8eoCRo0 4y ago
- imwillofficial 4y agoMilitary still use them
- 2OEH8eoCRo0 4y agoYup. LCAC. I've seen them operate off my ship while in the service. LHD-2 Essex https://www.dvidshub.net/image/6666366/uss-essex-lhd-2-conduct-lcacs-operations https://www.dvidshub.net/image/6666366/uss-essex-lhd-2-condu...
- Someone1234 4y agoThe video is largely correct. They did gloss over that strong winds would cause Hovercraft operations to suspend, and sometimes those could last an entire day in the channel. So while they solved some early design defects, Hovercraft remain hurt by weather more than other ships, and cannot easily go around it like a real aircraft can. Plus they don't pay enough attention to the Eurotunnel. While a SR.N4 can cross slightly faster, the Eurotunnel is far more reliable, and can get you a lot closer to your final destination (i.e. the land parts). You also have to look at the entire turn-around time of both, as loading the 60 vehicles onto the SR.N4 was time-consuming, but I don't have the numbers in front of me (only first-hand experience, it was SLOW). If you're ever in the South of England pop down to Lee-on-Solent, where these and other hovercraft are at the Hovercraft Museum. While you're in the area you can still take Hovertravel over to the Isle of Wight, but I'd take the cat back, so you get a chance to ride the quirky former London Underground tube trains.
- craz8 4y agoI have seen on Lake Washington, in the Seattle area, someone with a 1-2 person hovercraft driving/flying around At least one time they were dressed as Santa I’m a big fan - ha! - of these devices, but they are very, very loud for the amount of convenience they provide
- patja 4y agoWhile on my way to Desolation Sound in British Columbia, I've run across the Canadian Coast Guard hovercraft Siyay https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/CCGS_Siyay https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/CCGS_Siyay It was quite a surprise, and very loud. Heard it before I saw it.
- valdiorn 4y agoMy old neighbour was one of the lead designers of hovercrafts for the largest UK manufacturer (I think BHC). He also worked with the crew of James Bond "Diamonds are Forever", which features a hovercraft from the company, as an advisor. He used to invite the whole street to a barbecue every summer, and his garage was full of half-built hovercraft miniatures, pumps, miniature jet engines and whatever else you can think of, and hovercraft memorabilia, including photos of him with the James Bond crew and some ceremonial photos including the PM and members of the royal family IIRC, from when they launched new hovercrafts into service to cross the channel. Dude was a through and through engineering nerd and I had a blast reminiscing about his past :)
- firecall 4y agoI went on one of these as a kid! I remember it being a fantastically exciting experience at the time! I'd never even been on a plane before, so my most vivid memory is boarding and sitting in the main cabin! However, jumping on the train in London to Paris, getting pissed over lunch, and then getting the train home is/was a much easier thing to do than getting a ferry or hovercraft!
- registeredcorn 4y agoIt would be interesting to hear if some updates could be made to the fuel economy of these things. I know that the fuel consumption of both planes and cars used to be astronomical when compared to modern standards. The only (major) issue I see with this not happening with hovercraft is the lack of demand for it. Perhaps someone smart will take a crack at updating this thing. It'd be nice if they could do something to blunt the noise a bit, too.
- S_A_P 4y agoThis video made me think these would be in every garage. If you want to start at the hovercraft part go to 2:08… https://youtu.be/l-Vs0gYDN20 https://youtu.be/l-Vs0gYDN20
- baybal2 4y ago