Post #1694623
2026-04-05 18:22 UTC
One other example from the gas-turbine age is the hovercraft. I had this Ladybird book as a child (https://www.pennyreads.co.uk/ladybird-books/ladybird-how-it-works-the-hovercraft/ ) and it posited how hovercraft would revolutionise sea travel, how hovertrains like the French Aerotrain and UK's RTV 31 would replace conventional trains, and even how hovercraft technology could replace the forklift and pallet jack in warehouses. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracked_Hovercraft
Replies (1)
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@drmikepj@mastodon.social 2026-04-05 18:25
However, the hovercraft turned into an ultra-niche technolgy: it's good at three things: - travelling over mudflats at low tide, thus avoiding the need for a long pier at a ferry terminal with a big tidal range (which is why they're still used to serve the Isle of Wight) - travelling over rivers with lots of rapids in - landing large amounts of equipment on beaches - i.e. military naval invasions. Beyond those, it no longer competes. It's a technical niche, not a revolution.