Post #1694624
2026-04-05 18:25 UTC
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.
Replies (2)
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@drmikepj@mastodon.social 2026-04-05 18:28
So, when you look at a new technology, think: is it going to be a hovercraft or a helicopter - useful, but niche? That's a decent outcome but not an exciting one. Will it fall by the wayside entirely (like waveguides as an alternative to copper phone lines, rapidly eclipsed by optical fibre)? Or will it genuinely be useful? I would argue that the latter only becomes clear after a few years.
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@TOrynski@mastodon.scot 2026-04-05 18:42
@drmikepj there is actually one more use for hovercraft: traveling over crumbling ice in the spring. And, of course, live eels haulage.