Why Did All Large Passenger Hovercrafts Disappear? Where Did They Go?

What Happened to the World's Largest Hovercrafts? Why Did Most of the Hovercrafts Disappear?
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**𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀, 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽, 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼:
𝗡𝗮𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗬𝗧@𝗴𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺
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[@simonnicklin1313]

The popularity didn't decline. It was the end of duty free goods which paid Hoverspeed to keep the Hovercraft running. People loved the hovercraft and would use them regularly.

[@littlecente1133]

When me and my sister were children our parents took us on holiday to France every year - we went in these beautiful machines many times - they literally emerged from the sea straight up onto the beach - a phenomenal way to start your holiday!

[@john1703]

The Portsmouth to Isle of Wight hovercraft service still runs as at May 2024.

[@nheather]

It does say this at the very end of the video.

[@richardu]

@@nheather I think people are saying this because the title says "all" and they use the word "extinct" multiple times in the video. Can't make up their mind!

[@Exisles]

Indeed, albeit with diesel powered engines unlike the gas turbine driven ones of old.

[@cyberleaderandy1]

Ive seen that a few times. Many people use it to go to work and collect bikes from a shipping container on arrival or go and get in a car they have parked waiting.

[@aftonline]

@@richardu "All Large". The one still running is a smaller hovercraft than the bigger ones that used to run.

[@Robotadept]

Can remember getting these to France or IoW in the 70s was a great way to travel

[@timbrass]

Until you threw up!

[@vincelicata5880]

I went on one of these with my folks, we took a car hovercraft ferry with our Hillman avenger . Those were the days…

[@marcusupsall9350]

They still travel to IOW for passengers only

[@mikevale3620]

@@timbrassSome people have very weak constitutions when it comes to sea voyages of any kind.

[@boomsaxagofia]

​@mikevale3620 they were particularly bad for sea sickness tbf

[@TheDavidPoole]

My parents took me to France and back on one of the big hovercraft back in the mid\late 70s. What struck me was the amount of vibration and noise in the passenger compartment. In comparison, a passenger aircraft was virtually noise and vibration free. It added to the excitement for a teenaged me. Back in the day, even Dr. Who (Jon Pertwee) had a very cool looking hovercraft.

[@berttroubleyn3475]

Same memories for me: vibrations and noise. And you couldn't see out of the windows because of the constant spray from underneath the craft. It was very impressive to see the thing land on the beach, though...

[@heronimousbrapson863]

I crossed from Boulogne to Dover in one in 1974. It was fantastic!

[@tonyhilliarduk]

Why is there a picture of a Japanese bullet train while talking about the eurotunnel??

[@mikevale3620]

To some people a train is a train is a train when it comes to footage,

[@CoyoteMTB77]

@@mikevale3620 I agree, was just about to post something and you had already done it. If only the Chunnel had bullet trains for speed but more the punctuality of service!!

[@WhatALoadOfTosca]

Perhaps because the footage was cheaper. Does it really matter?

[@alanfrost4661]

Total idiots researching info

[@VikPaints]

Not a ship, it's classified as an aircraft. The person in charge of it is referred to as a pilot. The craft is not in contact with the ground when I'm operation hence the classification.

[@robertlockwood3540]

I worked as air crew on both the Princess Anne and Princess Margaret. If the wind was favourable you could hear them start their engines from across the other side of the channel.

[@WillMorgan89]

Our paths may have crossed! In the early 90's I used to travel on the Princess Anne and Princess Margaret when I was a boy when my dad was working in Germany with the Army. One of them is no more, but the other still exists to this day at the hovercraft museum near Portsmouth, worth checking it out if you'd like a trip down memory lane. Edit - wrote this before watching the video!

[@boomsaxagofia]

There are remains of the hoverport at pegwell just outside ramsgate still. One of my favourite places to walk

[@robertlockwood3540]

@@WillMorgan89 I have been there. The Museum is at Lee on Solent.

[@fremenondesand3896]

The only time I suffered seasickness was on the hovercraft, I had a lot of sweets that day. That said, I have nothing but fond memories of them. Always amazed me how many vehicles fit inside.

[@robertlockwood3540]

@@fremenondesand3896 After the craft was extended it could carry 60 cars.

[@GoXavi]

I remember travelling on Hoverspeed between Dover and Calais in 1987, just dug out the photos, thanks for the memory! 😃👍

[@tonycollins7965]

It was the abolishing of duty free sales that finally killed off the cross channel service coupled with the increase in oil prices. No longer commercially viable. There is still a passenger service to the Isle of Wight.

[@caver38]

There was no investment in improving the Hovercraft for the channel , and the tunnel killed it

[@markylon]

Wrong. The abolition of Duty free ended the service as people no longer travelled for Duty Free which subsided the high running costs. Which is why Boulogne stopped ferries, Folkestone stopped ferries and the hovercraft stopped. Basically people didn't go to France as the main reason was the duty free

[@tooyoungtobeold8756]

It was long gone before the Tunnel was built.

[@paulbaker654]

@@tooyoungtobeold8756 Channel Tunnel opened in 1994. The hovercraft service ended in 2000.

[@paulbaker654]

A replacement was on the drawing board which would have been more economical and quieter. However, Westland Aircraft, who owned BHC, was having financial problems so it never went ahead.

[@Pauldjreadman]

Could have turned into a tourist attraction .

[@simoncowles2426]

I've just moved from the Isle of Wight where I was fortunate enough to have my Hovertravel fare covered by my employer. It was nice making the journey back to the island in only 8 minutes, although it was frustrating when weather cancelled operations as the alternative is a fast catermeran, which takes 25 minutes is based half a mile up a windy pier.

[@petertwinn786]

Was always the best way to cross the English Channel.

[@JimUK]

We crossed the Channel in one of these in the 80's, the weather was horrendous and being kids we thought it would be fun to sit at the front, that was a mistake and to say we were unwell would be an understatement.

[@PlanetaryCitizen]

I had the same experience when I was a young teenager in the 70s. It took about an hour to reach the French coast, instead of 30 minutes. The weather was atrocious and after we arrived the pilot apologised to the passengers for coming out in it. They were fascinating craft, but not ideal to travel in if you suffer with motion sickness!

[@johngibson3837]

Had 4 trips across the channel in early 1970s , wonderful way to travel, bit noisy but that added to the fun

[@leschase1824]

I think I can remember around 1970 getting the hovercraft from Southampton to Cowes IOW. I was only about 5 or 6 years old at the time. Hovercraft one way and hydrofoil the other. Also another reason for the Dover Calais hovercraft being scrapped was, the end of "Duty Free" cheap booze crossings.

[@Exisles]

Seaspeed - Blue & white livery.

[@juagguproductions9713]

The princess Anne still exists, and Hovertravel goes daily, with a new Hovercraft service opening in Japan later this year! I don't think the Hovercraft is extinct yet, rather, I think their time is yet to come!

[@Alext165]

As a kid back in the 70s I was lucky enough to travel on the hovercraft many times and loved them. Watching this video bought back some memories

[@R1CH130]

I remember watching these come and go from Dover, when I was a kid! The noise they made was immense and they looked awesome!

[@qbarnes1893]

Your wrong, it is still operated commercially... It was conceived and manufactured, first, on the Isle of Wight, the BHC corporation, there’s still a commercial passenger service running from Ryde to southsea everyday.

[@marcbeebee6969]

😮

[@G6JPG]

They mention that towards the end.

[@georgedawson235]

Can hover craft operate in rough seas ?

[@marcbeebee6969]

@@georgedawson235 are priests good babysitters?

[@georgedawson235]

@@marcbeebee6969 my local priest was lovely He taught me how to milk a cow blind folded

[@klang180]

I went on one as a child and i can honestly say that the channel tunnel is vastly superior.

[@GDGRailway47712]

@8:04 it shows the wreckage of a smaller SN.N5 or 6 from the Isle of Wight service. That one flipped over in strong winds and big waves. Everyone actually survived that but some died when the rescue services cut a hole in the upturned hull and allowed the water in. Also, there are plenty of hovercraft still in use today, just that the IoW service is the only year-round scheduled passenger service. There are a couple of other passenger services and numerous industrial and search and rescue hovercraft in operation.

[@Real_Steve_Sharpe]

You should see the amphibious assault hovercraft the USMC operate. Huge great things they are, hundreds of tonnes of cargo capacity, RORO loading, even a well deck for launching and recovering rigid raiders _(or whatever they're called these days, idk)._ Incredible machines they are..

[@GDGRailway47712]

@@Real_Steve_Sharpe Look up the Russian's ZUBR air cushion landing craft.

[@DJ-Eye]

@@Real_Steve_Sharpe Ah yes, the LCAC is an awesome thing to behold.

[@LostsTVandRadio]

Loved the SRN4 - we always took the car to France on one of those. So fast and what a noise they made!

[@bertiesworld]

My first trip was out of Ramsgate harbour way back in the '60's on a small hovercraft. We went around the harbour (so they said) as you couldn't see much outside due to the spray. 😄 I later went on one of the SRN4 Hovercrafts on a day trip to Calais from the Hoverport at Pegwell bay. Good fun. And only last year we went over to the Isle of Wight on a hovercraft. Only 10mins but it certainly beats the ferry.

[@Rasscasse]

I did that trip from Ramsgate Pegwell Bay on a school trip. I went on Sir Christopher and Princess Margaret Big machines and room for plenty of cars and coaches and noisy. But extremely quick on a calm day, 35 minutes I think?

[@paul756uk2]

I live in Portsmouth and my first trip in a hovercraft was when i was around 6 on an SRN2 that was used for passenger trials. I used to belong to the hovercraft society and they organised trips to Goodwin sands from Dover on an SRN4 when it was low tide. People also brought along their own small craft on the car deck. It was quite a strange feeling being in the middle of the channel in an almost total silence.

[@walthamwalker]

Japanese trains dont travel on the channel tunnel lol

[@thejoin4687]

I was thinking that. Japanese engineering is world class, but a tunnel from Tokyo to France is a bit of a stretch.

[@davidtresarden9069]

One drawback was the fact that they could not operate in sea conditions much above force 6 and even in a force 4 could be quite bouncy

[@cyberleaderandy1]

I went over to France on either the Princess Anne or the Princess Margaret. Its was great fun and i remember rainbows outside the window from all the spray. Great experience.

[@DJ-Eye]

Ah - the early morning duty-free trips - I remember them well. The rainbows were even better on the Seacat to Belgium, full circles of brilliant colour. Halcion days.

[@richarddavidthomas]

Used the Hovercraft service to and from the IOW last year. It's quick and comfortable. Long may it continue.

[@fremenondesand3896]

I was on that craft when it broke the record. I remember the captain announcing it nonchalantly "Total time to cross is 22 minutes, a new world record."

[@williamhawkins69]

I crossed the Channel in a hovercraft in 1987. I’m glad of it as I had been intrigued from childhood

[@mary-janejenkins9560]

A hovercraft still runs between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight ❤❤

[@Roughrider77]

Can you take your own car on the hovercraft like a ferry?.

[@duckweedy]

It was very noisy and vibrated a lot and couldn't operate in windy conditions. It might have been faster but always ended up with a headache.

[@geraldwagner8739]

These beasts were so fascinating 👍

[@hy8076]

Still, passenger hovercraft running across the Solent, Southsea to Ryde.

[@NighthawkTVHarvey]

I love this channel ❤ it deserves a lot more recognition

[@Nauctis]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@boeckerdennis1]

I worked on one that ran from San Diego, California to Ensenada Mexico. We called it the ‘vomit comet “every time it would go over large wave, the air would come out of the cushions and crash the boat down. Sickness was the downfall of this route.

[@andrewarthurmatthews9990]

Good informative video and bring back memories of these intriguing crafts that in some ways seemed to come from science fiction. Just imagine standing by the gently sloping landing pad at the hover port then hearing this tremendous racket and seeing this small odd looking craft hitting the waves and then leaving the water and pulling up near by ! At its finest the channel trip by hovercraft took less time than the cross channel ferries did to load up with freight and passengers. Let’s hope there is a resurgence of the hovercraft

[@brianjohnson5789]

You got this spectacularly wrong, Passenger hovercraft still operating to the isle of wight

[@celtasnake]

You got this spectacularly wrong, he actually mentions this at the end of the video.

[@Real_Steve_Sharpe]

@brianjohnson5789 Go back and watch the video again, ask a grownup to help you with the big words, then see if you can get it right this time.

[@WhatALoadOfTosca]

"Spectacularly". Gosh, that was an exciting word. Let's get the police!

[@paulinnanjing]

​@celtasnake making a correct statement at the end of the video doesn't make the start of the video right when it's wrong.

[@paulinnanjing]

​@@Real_Steve_Sharpe do you have a problem with big words like extinct? They are not extinct. Therefore adults who understand words are going to comment when those words are repeatedly used wrongly in the video.

[@AnthonyTobyEllenor-pi4jq]

I travelled from Sweden to Denmark on a SAS hovercraft, it floated over the frozen sea so quickly it was unreal.

[@Howie900]

I can remember going on one of these to France for a day trip as a Kid. Amazing machine 👍👍👍👍

[@martinbennett2228]

It was definitely my favourite channel crossing.

[@geoffwright9570]

A brilliant piece of kit and there's still a place for its use in todays world. Very adaptable would make a good landing craft or rescue craft in difficult landscapes

[@ANDREWLEONARDSMITH]

the same thing happened with airships as they dissappeared also.

[@GJBricks]

Fond memories of riding those. Impressive beasts!

[@AlanSim0]

My grandmother took me on the Isle of Wight when I was 7. Over 60 years ago. Never forgot it.

[@andrewarthurmatthews9990]

I used it once in 1981 from France to UK and boy was it noisy , cramped , bumpy but very quick indeed .

[@stephenbutler3333]

I remember seeing the hovercraft service at Dover as a child , must have been in the mid 70's , my overwhelming impression of it was how unbelievably noisy it was

[@rather_be_a_cat]

I remember seeing the passenger hovercraft in Dover while I was boarding the ferry. I recall it being very noisy.

[@Ivan-cr3vc]

We took one from Dover to Calais summer of 79. They said the the pilot had to have both commercial pilots license and captains maritime papers. On the way over we passed one that was headed back to Dover. They had mechanical problems and were just floating dead. But they were just as stable and no floating problems sitting still.

[@waffoo999]

Growing up in Dover in the 70s and 80s, the sound of an SRN-4 startup, departure or arrival was a permanent background sound as familiar as the seagulls.

[@user-mj8dq2eh4q]

It's still used on and to the Isle of Wight. Regularly use it every year.. Fully recommend it.. shame that the technology never took off it's a great site and sound

[@andyaccount]

No mention of the RNLI using hovercrafts, although technically they are not passenger ones but are surely based on them. I went on a school trip to Calais on the Princess Margaret in 1981 or 1982

[@keithwalker6892]

I went on it once and it was thrilling. Lots of spray tho and hard to see out of.I

[@frankgilbert1812]

The service to the Isle of Wight is from Southsea, adjacent to Portsmouth. I've used it many times, it's quick, efficient, fun and relatively cheap. There are longer videos of it on here.

[@bugattieb110ss]

The pictures of the damaged 'Princess Margaret' SRN4 were actually a much smaller single-engined SRN6!

[@HarryFlashmanVC]

I travelled on the big Mountbatten class several times until about 1995. They were magnificent machines and until the tunnel was built, the quickest way to cross the straits. The tunnel was the main reason they were scrapped

[@johnbellamy6449]

went on a day trip to France from Ramsgate in the 1980s . glad we did. nice memory . i think the company was called Hoverspeed .

[@billblair3941]

I took the hovercraft from Dover to Calais in 1971. It was fast but every time you hit a swell l felt a bump and I began to feel sick. I was glad we landed when we did or I may have thrown up.

[@1ramises]

I used to work for hoverspeed :)

[@G6JPG]

I remember crossing [the Channel] on one of these, around 1980 I think. You couldn't see much from the windows because of the spray. Quick, though!

[@garethbelk4065]

they were sick buckets, the only time i have been seasick, about 10 yrs old if i recall

[@bobikdylan]

I remember going to France with my parents in the 70s. It was fast and exciting but very, very noisy.

[@BIGV710]

channel tunnel killed them off and some that retired are at the hovercraft museum in Lee-On-Solent near to Gosport Hampshire

[@europhile2658]

I went on one. I found them very noisy and you couldn't see anything because of the water spray. One ride was enough! I also tried the Hydrofoil, they were much better but whatever happened to them?

[@davidaylett3266]

I genuinely miss the sound around the coast of the Engines when younger !

[@davidstewart4570]

Many of my son's classmates live on the Isle of Wight, and travel to and from School every day by hovercraft. They can claim to be the only children in the world who do so. The basic problem of the cost-effectiveness of hovercraft back in the day was that they were conceived more as aircraft that could float than as ships that could fly. Hence they were constructed using very expensive aviation-derived principles, and fitted with incredibly thirsty gas turbine engines. Timber and diesel might well have made them more financially viable.

[@UranusMcVitieFish-yd7oq]

Passenger hovercrafts still operate between Southsea in England and Ryde on the Isle of Wight.

[@Rasscasse]

I took a return trip on one these on a school holiday. That was from Ramsgate Pegwell Bay and I think the company was called HoverLloyd. Flew out on Sir Christopher and came back a few days later on Princess Margaret This was before the Hoverspeed service from dover I think.

[@KiltedGreen]

I spoke to a man at Dover who I think worked for HoverSpeed, or at least the port anyway, on the day of the last cross-channel crossing and said “I suppose it wasn’t making money any more”. He replied, “No, it’s still making money. It just doesn’t make enough money.”

[@joanne26]

I remember going on holiday in 1984 with my parents🙏🙏🙏 to Lake Garda stopping at the top of the lake at RIVA We went by coach across the channel to Calais by Hovercraft It did not take long from Dover Great happy days travelling to Europe. 🇬🇧🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿😎😎😎😃😃❤️❤️

[@scotsboy4957]

I remember having a GB car sticker on the boot with the logo streamlining the channel, happy days.

[@white-dragon4424]

I think the biggest user of hovercraft now is the USMC.

[@oldrrocr]

do they ever sell them to civilians?

[@white-dragon4424]

@@oldrrocr They're not those sorts of hovercraft. They're specialised versions built for transporting armoured vehicles ashore, as well as troops.

[@ROCKINGMAN]

I wondered why the hovercraft was abandoned. Went on one in 1995 Dover to Calais, over very choppy water. I almost felt sick on it, but the journey was quicker than ferry. Seems the armed forces are slow to see potential, hovercraft, jet engine, bouncing bomb. Remarkable that this craft could carry cars, passengers. What happened to the hydrofoil?

[@zappababe8577]

The Channel Tunnel must have had an impact on the Hovercraft. I understand that they used much more fuel than the conventional ships and ferries, so it just wasn't commercially viable. I went on the Channel Tunnel train, whic was large enough to carry a coach inside it. I was in awe of the scale of the entire engineering project.

[@namugriff]

My uncle worked for a company that would make the skirts for hovercrafts. And las5 year a new hovercraft was being tested in Portsmouth harbour ready to be sent to Asia for passenger service.

[@JamesRogers-vs4vb]

Theres a hovercraft museum in lee on solent gosport where some still survie

[@chrischibnall593]

I first tasted Southern Comfort on a hovercraft from Dover to Bologne. It came in a tiny plastic shot-glass, and although the weather was by no means bad, the ride was extremely bumpy. The challenge was not just to avoid spilling the drink, but actually getting it to my lips!

[@AintBigAintClever]

Hovercraft are still in use between UK mainland and Isle of Wight.

[@philippepalmer2968]

remember so well as a youngster during the 1970s the annual summer holidays journey to France to visit family using the Hoverlloyd service from Ramsgate to Calais

[@13infbatt]

I’m a big fan .

[@picsntech]

If youever travelled on one in rough weather you would certainly know why.Vomit Comets par excellence.

[@anandmorris]

I went on one in the late eighties from mainland UK to the Isle of Man. Was about 4yo!!

[@GaNaZone]

That's not the Eurostar - It's a Japanese shinkansen!

[@albertlay8927]

As I've understood, the patents for the Hovercraft were so tight, that no other manufacturer could built one, so there was no competition. As a result, the Hovercraft technology stagnated for decades, with hardly any innovations and improvements. When the patents were released, the Hovercraft was already obsolete.

[@Goldi3loxrox]

I went across the channel to France in the early 1990's My main take away was the vibrations of the motors Not helped by the firm plastic seats. TThe weather was too rough for the return journey so had to take the Ferry.

[@RedcoatT]

l once used the hovercraft service to cross the English Channel, it was like travelling on top of a very noisy washing machine on spin.

[@indridcold8433]

The name of the hovercraft at the end said, "Soylent Flyer." It must run on people! Soylent Flyer runs on people!

[@Hfil66]

One of the great things about the hovercraft was because they could come out onto land they were extremely fast to load and unload.

[@honestjohn1129]

I went to France on one of the big ones with the school - I remember it being noisy & couldn’t see much out of the window because of the water

[@michaelturner4457]

9:54 "high speed Eurostar train" but that's a Japanese Shinkansen bullet train.

[@tarquinmidwinter2056]

Crossed the Channel in one of these in the 1970s. Spent the second half of the trip sitting (you couldn't get up and go anywhere) with other passengers' vomit sloshing around my feet. Good riddance. Much prefer a proper boat.

[@SiskinOnUTube]

When I went on one it was noisy and bumpy. Still fun though.

[@gigteevee6118]

There’s a hovercraft service in Japan now apparently.

[@chatters7969]

It’s not bloody extinct, I caught the hover craft from Portsmouth to ride on the Isle of Wight only the other day!

[@hannahatkins636]

For people who suffer from sea sickness, like myself, which is nicer on your stomach a hovercraft or the ferry? Almost everytime I have been on a ferry I get seasick.

[@Nitecrow314]

Aeroplane....

[@leebishop4570]

It was the isle of wight hovercraft that had an accident but the narrator was talking about the SRN-4 so factually incorrect

[@misterbridger]

The photos used in the video are of the Isle of Wight SRN4 hover that overturned in the early 1970s, but there was also an incident involving the Princess Margaret at Dover.

[@andrewberridge4630]

The description of the accident was mostly correct, but the pictures are of the SRN.6 incident. A totally different craft.

[@lg5819]

The American and Russian militaries use British invented Hovercrafts but I don’t believe the British military showed any interest in it. I remember boarding the giant commercial hovercraft between Dover and Calais. There is still a commercial hovercraft service running between the Isle of Wight and England but it is a smaller hovercraft compared to the one that ran between Dover and Calais.

[@Blacknight1812]

the Hoover craft stilll runs to the Isle of Wight every day and is used extensively in remote parts of the amazon river in Brasil. It's not extinct as you claim.

[@thejoin4687]

Ryde to the Amazon and back is still good value.

[@frasermitchell9183]

My first trip to Rome in 1980 to join my fiance for Christmas involved taking the hovercraft service from Dover to Boulogne. A gas turbine powered train then whisked me to Paris, and then took the Palatino, the overnight sleeper train to Rome. We've been married now for 43 years !

[@ivortoad]

Congratulations. These days it would be a boring easyJet type trip out of Luton or somewhere and not worth remembering 43 years later!