PAUL PHELAN / CAIRNS
Flightship Dragon Commuter design frozen after successful completion of sea trials
Cairns, Australia-based wing-in-ground-effect (WIGE) craft manufacturer Flightship Ground Effect has completed sea trials of its all-composite, single-engined FS8 Dragon Commuter and launched production after freezing the type's aerodynamic and structural design.
The FS8 is powered by a General Motors 335kW (450hp) V8 automobile engine driving two propellers through a gearbox to provide airflow over its twin rudders.
Initial orders are held from buyers in Canada, the Maldives, the Middle East, Spain and Thailand and some customers may opt to equip their aircraft with forward-looking infra-red night vision equipment such as Raytheon's 4000B system, which is still undergoing certification for the WIGE application.
The nominally eight-seat FS8 is now being marketed as a 10-seat transport with only minor reworking, having demonstrated significantly better than expected performance in flight trials.
Flightship's aerodynamics are based around an all-composite "reverse delta" wing with a horizontal inboard section and about 15° of anhedral on its main outer section.
The company is jointly owned by four Singaporean businessmen and Australian managing director John Leslie, who together have invested over A$11 million ($6.5 million) in the venture.
The FS8 and later variants will be certificated under International Maritime Organisation (IMO) rules, which designate it as a Type A ground-effect craft - defined as capable of operating only in ground effect and incapable of free flight. The FS8 is currently approved for daylight operation only with a minimum crew of one helmsman and one navigator/engineer.
The vehicle cruises at 85kt (160km/h) at a height of 6.6ft (2m) above the surface, with a maximum height of 10ft. The craft is capable of overflying sandbars, beaches and coral reefs, providing direct point-to-point capability in most projected roles.
Waterborne propulsion for taxiing, mooring and low-speed manoeuvring is provided by retractable hydraulic thrusters in the wingtip floats.
Although commercially viable in its own right, the FS8 has also served as a proof of concept for the planned twin-turboprop Dragon Clipper variant, which would have a 21,000kg (46,250lb) take-off weight and capacity for 40 passengers.
Source: Flight International
