Ground effect

Discussion in 'Boat Design' started by Willallison, Jan 15, 2003.

  1. Willallison
    Joined: Oct 2001
    Posts: 3,590
    Likes: 130, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 2369
    Location: Australia

    Willallison Senior Member

  2. Jeff
    Joined: Jun 2001
    Posts: 1,368
    Likes: 71, Points: 58, Legacy Rep: 923
    Location: Great Lakes

    Jeff Moderator

    Wow - talk about thinking outside the box... and large projects!

    This is from the link posted above which shows the smaller ground effect 40' Islander and rendered views of the 192' Gemini.
     
  3. Willallison
    Joined: Oct 2001
    Posts: 3,590
    Likes: 130, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 2369
    Location: Australia

    Willallison Senior Member

    project for "Option Two" do you think...?;)
     
  4. fishboat
    Joined: Oct 2002
    Posts: 25
    Likes: 0, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 10
    Location: Southern Lake Michigan

    fishboat Junior Member

    If you're looking for something new, look to something old. The Russians developed a similar, though MUCH larger, ground-effect craft like this back in the 50's or 60's. Though it seemed to work, the changing times & leadership switched direction & the long-term use of the craft never got off the ground..so to speak.
     
  5. FRANKIEFRANKIE
    Joined: Aug 2002
    Posts: 43
    Likes: 1, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 60
    Location: FLORIDA

    FRANKIEFRANKIE Junior Member

    Check the Schoellmarine.com web site for the patent he holds. It is being built currently in NJ.
     
  6. Mike D
    Joined: Sep 2002
    Posts: 104
    Likes: 18, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 465
    Location: Canada

    Mike D Senior Member

  7. fishboat
    Joined: Oct 2002
    Posts: 25
    Likes: 0, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 10
    Location: Southern Lake Michigan

    fishboat Junior Member

    Mike,
    That's the one. I saw film of it being tested sometime back. Talk about a 'boat' kicking up a fuss on the water...whew. This craft was huge...it was hoped to be a secret weapon that would be key in overwhelming the US if the cold war ever went hot.
     
  8. Mike D
    Joined: Sep 2002
    Posts: 104
    Likes: 18, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 465
    Location: Canada

    Mike D Senior Member

    Kevin

    I've seen a few shows on TV about it. Aren't the senior designers now in the US?

    I read extensively many of the sites on the net over a year ago and there are 1290 on Google as of a few minutes ago.


    Michael
     
  9. fishboat
    Joined: Oct 2002
    Posts: 25
    Likes: 0, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 10
    Location: Southern Lake Michigan

    fishboat Junior Member

    Michael,
    As I remember there was one specific designer that was literally the dreamer, the architect of the craft & the project head....much like the same type of project setup when the Russians copied our B29 SuperFortress and called it their TU-4. As with many Russian programs it goes forward as long as you remain in good graces with whomever is in power...as soon the head of the WIG project fell out of graces, due in part to shifted priorities in the Russian government, then the project was cancelled. I would guess the main designer on this craft is long since dead. There may be others still alive & in the US.
     
  10. tspeer
    Joined: Feb 2002
    Posts: 2,319
    Likes: 303, Points: 83, Legacy Rep: 1673
    Location: Port Gamble, Washington, USA

    tspeer Senior Member

    Actually, it was intended to transport troops across the Baltic sea for amphibious assaults on the Nordic states. It could fly above rough seas and run right up on the beach, bypassing defensive obstacles.

    The Russian Ekranoplan's are built using ship-type construction. Heavy and rugged compared to the thin-skinned construction typical of most aircraft.

    I once met the original inventor of the WIG, Alexander Lippish. He told me he had envisioned the WIG to be used in riverine operations, like going up the Amazon, with its ability to zoom over obstacles like fallen trees. He didn't see any need for the WIG to be able to sustain flight.

    Boeing PhantomWorks in Long Beach are looking at a cross between the WIG and conventional aircraft to build a very large cargo plane (http://foxxaero.homestead.com/indrad_043.html). Unlike most WIG's this one would be land based and not capable of landing on water, and it would be capable of flying at medium altitudes (~25,000 ft). So it's really an airplane that takes advantage of ground effect, rather than a died-in-the-wool Ekranoplan. The plane will also be designed for minimum construction cost - nearly all developable surfaces, interchangeable tail surfaces, etc. Since this rendering was released, they've gone to a T tail, which makes sense because a conventional tail on a WIG is a recipe for unstable pitch-heave coupling.
     
  11. Steve Gray
    Joined: Oct 2002
    Posts: 22
    Likes: 0, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 10
    Location: Weymouth, UK

    Steve Gray Junior Member

    A few years ago, Channel 4 TV in the UK produced an hour-long programme (entitled 'Eukranoplan') devoted to these ground-effect craft. The last fifteen minutes was used to show modern examples as 'transports of the future', but the majority of it was given over to the historical stuff, mainly footage of the Soviet craft in action and under construction, interviews with developers and pilots--with one or two prangs included for good measure. The craft had fat, stepped hulls, V-tails and multiple, tucked-in-down-angled motor pods--so it looks like they were on the right lines.

    One part showed a factory on the Black Sea, I think, where several of these huge things had been moth-balled and were still sitting there waiting to be finished; a hopeful interviewee said that maybe development, building and selling E-plans would be a good economic proposal for the new Russia--although the programme makers concluded that the market appeared to be limited to 'personal water taxi' styles, dominated by German suppliers (of course!).

    Whatever, I'm glad that I taped that programme--I'll have to dig it out to watch it again.
     
  12. yipster
    Joined: Oct 2002
    Posts: 3,486
    Likes: 97, Points: 58, Legacy Rep: 1148
    Location: netherlands

    yipster designer

  13. Zanith
    Joined: Dec 2002
    Posts: 10
    Likes: 0, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 10
    Location: I lost my map. HELP!

    Zanith Junior Member

    I wonder how these craft would manage to be stable on a sea with fairly moderate swells.
     
  14. tspeer
    Joined: Feb 2002
    Posts: 2,319
    Likes: 303, Points: 83, Legacy Rep: 1673
    Location: Port Gamble, Washington, USA

    tspeer Senior Member

    It would be much like a hydrofoil - you platform the smaller waves and contour the larger ones. What constitutes a "small" wave or a "large" one would depend on the craft and its speed.

    Just like with a boat, the encounter frequency will go up as the craft goes faster. There will be some natural frequency for its heave response, and at encounter frequencies much greater than that, it will simply not respond to the waves. The effective flying height will then be relative to the mean water level, which could be a problem if the peak wave amplitude is large compared to the flying height.

    For encounter frequencies less the natural frequency of the heave response, the craft could contour the waves and the ride quality would be like that of a roller coaster. Since the WIG will undoubtedly have an automatic control system, the pilot can also control the natural frequency somewhat by selecting different gains for the feedback system to get either a "hard" or "soft" ride.

    The pilot would have two choices in large swells were difficult for the craft to handle. One option is to fly higher, requiring more power but maintaining speed and ride quality. The other option would be to slow down enough to follow the wave contour, which could make for a rough ride.

    I suspect the ability to platform the waves will determine the limiting sea state for flying operations. I'd also expect that most practical WIG craft would be capable of flying high enough to handle some pretty severe seas. And the speed would allow you to stay away from most nasty weather systems.
     

  15. Zanith
    Joined: Dec 2002
    Posts: 10
    Likes: 0, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 10
    Location: I lost my map. HELP!

    Zanith Junior Member

    tspeer - Hrm. Well, even though. We do and often encounter unplanned issues and even unforseen events. But I agree.
     
Loading...
Forum posts represent the experience, opinion, and view of individual users. Boat Design Net does not necessarily endorse nor share the view of each individual post.
When making potentially dangerous or financial decisions, always employ and consult appropriate professionals. Your circumstances or experience may be different.