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Aviation History
1963
1963 - 1141.PDF
Air-Cushion Vehicles FLIGHT International supplement, 23 May 1963 INTERNATIONAL NEWS Nearing Completion at the Cowes works of J. Samuel White is this research craft, the HD-1, designed by the Technical Group of Hovercraft Development Ltd Austria and the D.2 Austrian shipping concerns are inter ested in the Denny D.2 and have studied it in operation on the Clyde, Ballasted to provide comparable conditions to a load of 80 passengers, D.2 made high speed runs, tight turns and crash stops with three Austrian officials aboard. They were Herr Ernst Schifter of the government department concerned with the upkeep of the Danube, Herr Hans Scherer, technical director of the First Austrian Steamship Company of Vienna and Dr Hans Wurmboeck, a director of the Continental Motor Shipping Com pany. The visitors were interested in the possible use of the D.2 on the Danube and other Austrian waters. They reported themselves as being "very impressed." Tunnel v. ACV A spokesman for the Channel tunnel study group has disputed the claim by Westland chairman Sir Eric Mensforth that ten ACVs could carry annually across the Channel the traffic visualized for a tunnel in 1970. The spokesman said that they did not wish to detract from Westland's tre mendous achievement, but they could not ignore Sir Eric's challenge when he said that ten ACVs, costing £15m, could, in 1970, cope with all the cross- Channel traffic carried by a Channel tunnel costing £100m. The spokesman went on: "As the expected peak hour volume in 1970, as forecast by competent traffic experts, is 950 vehicles in one direction, it will require 37 hovercraft costing £55.5m. In 1980 the estimated peak hour volume in one direction is 1,300 vehicles, which would require 52 hovercraft, all 'in service,' costing £78m (exclusive of financial charges)." Port installations for 52 hovercraft would require an enormous investment, far greater than for the tunnel terminals, costing £25m, proposed by the study group. The spokesman added: "Over a period of 50 years, if one takes into account the continuing capital cost of replacement of the hovercraft—the cost of maintenance and the heavy amortiza tion of the capital invested—we have no hesitation in stating that a hovercraft cross-Channel service would greatly exceed the cost of the Channel tunnel." Ireland's First The first ACV built in Ireland—by garage mechanic Mr Peter Reid and powered by a lawnmower engine—is reported by the Daily Express to have been driven by seven-year-old Carol McCoubrey. ACV-4 Bearing the designation ACV-4, and designed by Mr F. G. Cross, who worked on the SR.N2 and CC2, a projected craft is reported by The Sunday Times to have an intended operating cost of 2^d per passenger mile. It would be 88ft long, have a hover height of up to 2ft and be of plenum-chamber type. *f VA-6 Announced in our April issue, this Vickers craft will be based on practical experience gained with VA-3 and will travel at speeds of up to 80kt with a payload of 13 tons (Photograph by Walter Zuerl) Carabao, the name of the Philippines water buffalo, has been conferred on the new Bell ACV below), which has three circular cells fed by a single lift fan. It can surmount obstacles up to lft high 70
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