The last Hovercraft?

[caravanman]

On my recent visit to the Isle of Wight, a large island just off the British mainland, I saw what was said to be the last hovercraft operating a passenger service anywhere in the world.

I was quite surprised by this information, as at one time they were seen as a modern mode of travel, here in the UK.

We had cross channel hovercraft which competed with the ferries to France, and even ones which serviced the Scottish offshore islands.

I understand they were rather loud and not too smooth a ride, according to a Scottish friend.







I didn't travel on this myself. I did take a video of the hovercraft arriving onto the landing spot, and passengers alighting, but I can't upload it at the moment, the file is too large.
Edit: My first youtube post!

 

[Metra Electric Rider]

Did the Doctor have a hovercar at one point?

 

[Maglev]

There was one for sale advertised on Facebook here. A hovercraft would be ideal for transportation between the main town on the island and Bellingham, the nearest city. There only is an occasional 3-passenger Cessna plying the route now. The Washington State Ferry leaves from the other side of the island, and goes to Anacortes (pop. 20,000) on the mainland. Bellingham (pop. 100,000) has many more services and a university, as well as an Amtrak station at a possible hovercraft landing area.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

I was quite surprised by this information, as at one time they were seen as a modern mode of travel, here in the UK.

Major impediments to hovercraft adoption include limited market potential with worst-in-class noise, efficiency, and availability. They gobble fuel like it's free, require excessive maintenance, and struggle with rough seas. Modern designs are for MIL/SAR operations and would bankrupt most profit-seeking uses. Commercial versions of passenger hovercraft will soon be gone but will be survived by the monorail, which was patened in the UK back in the 1820's and is still seeing new builds today! Never would have guessed the monorail would survive this long but here we are and there's no end in sight.

 

[tgstubbs1]

I rode on one across the channel in the late '70's. It was very noisy. You couldn't look out and you couldn't get away from the contant humming sound. I guess it was supposed to be faster compared to a regular boat and was kind of a big deal at the time.