Hovercraft In Australia

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32361, 29 July 1970, Page 14

Hovercraft In Australia

(N.Z. Press Assn.—-Copyright) ADELAIDE. ’ A South Australian < firm has announced plans : for Australia’s first pro-, duction-line assembly for s hovercraft, giving a s major fillip to one of 1 Australia’s newest and s most promising trans- f port industries. ! Taylorcraft Air Cushion Ve- f hides plans an initial produc- . tion of at least 50 of the three-passenger Skimaire hov- 1 ercraft, to be sold in Austra- 1 lia and exported to the United States and Asia. The first four vehicles l should roll off the production ' line in Elizabeth, a satellite 1 city 15 miles north of Adelaide, within two months. i The Skimaire will be pow-1 ered by a Volkswagen indust-1 rial engine and will cost i $4200. I

Taylorcraft’s consultant sales engineer (Mr B. McAllister) who operated Britain’s first commercial hovercraft, said that the Skimaire would have a variety of uses. It was expected the craft, would be suitable for marine and river surveying, patrol work and exploration, or just for pleasure. Mr McAllister said that sales outlets for the 50 m.p.h. machine were being set up in Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, and Papua-New Guinea. The firm was also negotiating for a United States agency. To promote exports, a salesdemonstration tour of SouthEast Asia would be made soon with one of the first production models. The company planned to prepare the market with Skimaire and follow it with a larger production model, the Utilaire, within a year, Mr McAllister said. This model

would have three engines—one for lift and two for thrust—and would be able to carry 10' passengers or one vehicle. On land, the Utilaire would have a 2ft clearance for use in survey and exploration work. “With its high power, it will be able to travel over country inaccessible to a fourwheel vehicle,” Mr McAllister said. To back the Skimaire venture, Mr McAllister and Mr M. Murray, a master mariner who commanded an 80-passen-ger hovercraft In Britain, have devised a training system for hovercraft drivers. A training school to open at Elizabeth next month is expected to train Asians and Pacific Islanders, as well as Australians. Mr McAllister and Mr Murray are the only licensed hovercraft operators in Australia. Their full-time course for driver (second class) will:

take a fortnight but part-time evening classes are also under consideration. Navigation, meteorology, and marine and operational procedures are included in the curriculum. A second Adelaide company, Hovergem Australia Pty, Ltd, has just completed its first hovercraft, named the Hovergem at a cost of $3500. This craft, ordered by a South Australian pastoral company, is 32ft long, has a maximum speed of 80 m.p.h., and can cruise at between 35 and 50 m.p.h. for about three hours. The manufacturers put the Hovergem through a series of trials recently, and were highly-satisfied with its performance.

Hol4-ln-On*. B. Kinsman, using a 7-iron, holed his tee shot at the 130 yd ninth hole at Richmond Hill. Manila C.R.—A. Davies (Singapore), driving a Mini Cooper, won the first Manila Grand Prix. A. Poon (Hong Kong. Escort 1600) was second.