What Makes Hovercraft So Stable And Safe?
A hovercraft does not cut through the water like a conventional watercraft means it is far less susceptible to waves and water hazards like floating trees or shallow shoals. This much is fairly obvious: if you travel over an obstacle you can not be affected by the obstacle.
Hovercraft also have a substantially wider beam than most all boats and ships. The wider beam means that the vehicle is less likely to wobble from side to side. A narrow table is easier to turn on its side than a wide one.
Hovercraft have a lower center of gravity than most other vehicles. A low and wide ride is much harder to upset than something tall and skinny.
Not only do hovercraft ride on a relatively speaking soft cushion of air, but they also have a big inflated rubberized skirt around the bottom. Hitting something solid like a wall would result in bouncing rather than crumpling.
A “disaster” with a hovercraft such as engine failure would mean that the craft would stop and settle on its rubberized skirt before the skirt deflated. This would mean stopping and landing on water or land in a rather soft and padded way.
Because of all of these reasons and many more, hovercraft just do not have real accidents. They do not cause the loss of life or limb.
Ferries sink and capsize often. Trains derail and crush things and themselves. Airplanes fall out of the sky and explode. Automobiles are 3000 pound bullets that have “crumple zones” built into them so the crush properly and absorb kinetic energy.
Hovercraft have a logical shape and ride on something called a “cushion” of air with a big rubber bumper around them.
Is it really any wonder accidents with them seemingly never happen?