Hovershow 2009
Hovershow 2009
2009 marked the 50th anniversary of the hovercraft as we know it today. To mark this special occasion, the Hovercraft Museum at HMS Daedalus, Lee-On-Solent, made their annual Hovershow an even more special event. I took a trip to the hovershow to see what was going on, and amidst the hubbub, managed to get a few photographs of a few of the exhibits. If you have any photos from this event, and would like me to display them on this page too, please please get in touch!
On this page:
General Hovershow photos
Hovershow 2009 banner at HMS Daedalus |
The queue to get in! |
Inside: The two SRN4s surrounded by hovercraft large and small from the Museum's collection and privately owned. |
The Hovershow from across the road |
Christopher Cockerell's original Coffee Tin experiment, on display at the Museum |
Me on the bow ramp of the museum's original craft, donated to Warwick in the late '70s. |
Air Vehicles Tiger 12
An Air Vehicles Tiger 12 cruises around the Solent |
... and demonstrates its amphibious capabilities. |
Tiger 12 landed |
Four craft on the beach at Lee-On-Solent |
SRN4
Rolls-Royce logo on the entry ramp wall of SRN4 The Princess Anne |
Cockpit of The Princess Margaret, closed from the public |
Inside the skirt of The Princess Anne, as seen from the lowered bow ramp |
Freedom 90 arrives.
AP1-88 Freedom 90, the hovercraft with the most service hours in the world, arrives from the Isle of Wight on a scheduled, deliberately diverted, normal Hovertravel trip to/from the island. In the foreground is the superstructure of the SRN6 Twin-Prop craft in which I was sitting at the time Freedom 90 arrived. A strange nostalgic feeling followed.
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SRN6 Walkaround
These photographs come from the SRN6 Twin Prop (Mk. 6) page of the site. This craft is owned by the Hovercraft Museum, and lovingly kept in serviceable condition by their volunteers. I took a trip on this craft during Hovershow 2009, and photos and videos can be found from the SRN6 Twin Prop page.
SRN6 017 (the original Sure, later stretched, and converted to twin-propeller and outfitted for research purposes). Landed at Lee. This craft carries remnants of old research kit control panels. |
Closeup of the bow of the craft showing the RADAR antennae, air scoop, and original front-loading access bow ramp. |
Looking forward along the top of the craft, from the side access door. |
Looking aft toward the two main rear propellers. |
The lateral "puff port" on the side of the craft, opened on demand by the pilot, supplied by lift air from the plenum chamber. |
The engine assembly and two main propellers, along with the rudder and elevator tailfin of the SRN6. |
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Side-on view of the two main propellers and their mountings. | |
Page updated: Monday, August 29, 2011