Back in the ‘80s, the Soviet Navy operated a very unusual vehicle called an Ekranoplan. Combining some of the features of both a seagoing vessel and an airplane, it operated out of the water, in ground effect, and essentially defined an entirely new class of vehicle.
The Lun-class Ekranoplan was large, about the size of an Airbus A380, and weighed over 300 tons, but could travel in excess of 340 mph just skimming the surface of the water. Although the design promised long-range, heavy payload and high-speed, curiously little development of this concept occurred in the West. This appears to be changing, however, and the Virginia-based Flying Ship Company has designed an autonomous, electrically powered wing in ground effect drone for light cargo delivery.
Both commercial customers and DARPA have shown interest, and modern materials combined with advanced engineering design tools may make the wing in ground effect vehicle the cargo-carrying solution that combines high-speed with low cost.
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