Fitted with the engine of a race car (7-litre, 500hp-V8 engine) and looks like a sleek seaplane, the Airfish 8 is in fact classified as a merchant ship.
The AirFish-8 is an alternative method of sea transportation, combining the technologies of aviation and marine craft.
Company Wigetworks have created AirFish-8, a boat/plane hybrid that glides on water. Due to the machines unique structure, it is able to utilise what is known as the “Wing in Ground Effect.” This is when an aircraft is able to produce additional lift when flying near the ground.
The AirFish 8 (AF8) is an 8-10 seater WIG Craft with a 17m x 15m footprint. It is designed to be operated by 2 crew and carrying capacity for 6-8 passengers in standard civilian transport configuration. It is powered by a pair of General Motors LS3 V8 engines burning unleaded gasoline. Each engine has a maximum power output of 500hp, coupled to a four-bladed reversible variable pitch propeller. In standard configuration, the engine uses approximately 70l of fuel per hour in typical flight conditions. The power-plant enables the marine craft to attain a maximum speed of 106k and a cruise speed of 80k, travelling at up to 7m above sea level. The WIG marine craft can travel up to 300nm without any additional supplies.
AirFish 8 is made of carbon fibre reinforced plastic or sandwich composite materials. It is based on Dr Alexander Martin Lippisch’s reverse delta wing design. Its design standards comply with International Maritime Organization (IMO) regulations. It has an overall length of 17.2m, height of 3.5m and wingspan of 15m.
The turning radius of the AirFish 8 is approximately 160m in ground effect mode and 100m in displacement mode. AirFish 8 requires a 500m take-off distance and a 300m-500m landing distance. It has a maximum take-off weight of 5,550kg and can carry 1,000kg of useful load and 200kg of fuel on-board.
