Hovercraft Wing-In-Ground (WIG) Platform Research Eric Hansen

15 June 2011

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Getting Popular Knowledge Behind Us:

Wing in Ground (WIG) craft compress air against the surface of the earth effectively increasing efficiency (L/D)
The Soviets in the 50s built numerous flying ships (Caspian Sea Monster) which had questionable utility and the technology never went anywhere Despite numerous initiatives, WIGs have never found sufficient utility and value to be successful and prolific Activity in commercial (Europe / Asia primarily) development have been ongoing for transport, military and hobby applications. The Advantages of Cost Efficiency for marine transport remain controversial

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A Quick History

Wing in Ground (WIG) craft compress air against the surface of the earth effectively increasing efficiency (L/D)
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Iranian Bavar-2
Iranian Sacred Defense celebrations, Sept 2010
Operational Squadron of Ground Effect Vehicles (GEV)

Domestically Built 1 & 2 Seat; Oceangoing; 130 km/hr (est.)

Reverse Delta wings / Large Tail; Lippisch design (similar to X-114) Machine Guns, Surveillance Equipment, Radar Evading (claimed) Patrol, Recon. & Harass; Work with Zulfikar fast patrol boats armed with Iranian Nasr-1 medium range anti-ship missiles / swarm
[Mehr News Agency]

[Mehr News Agency]

[Photo: Fars news agency, by Vahid reza Alaei.]

[Mehr News Agency]

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Classifications
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and IMO agreed Type A and B WIGs will come under the jurisdiction of the IMO. Type C WIGs however will be classified as aircraft and will come under the jurisdiction of the ICAO. Type A: No Out of Ground Effect Capability Type B: Flight Capability up to 150 meters; ~ 500 feet Type C: Full Flight Capability (Aircraft)

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Two Types of WIG Design Approaches Span Dominated Ground effect (SDGE) Aspect Ratio (wingspan to chord) is increased Improved Lift / Drag Ratio (more efficient)

Chord Dominated Ground Effect (CDGE) Air is captured (Ram Effect) Lift is increased

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Considerations
ADVANTAGES
Life Cycle & Operating costs / logistics same as Boats Operational (flight) training ~ 20hrs; Similar to boats Low Infrastructure and Basing Requirements Low Operator physical stress; higher comfort level

High Fuel Efficiency

LIMITATIONS
Currently impacted by weather conditions Operations in High Sea States not mature

Take-off and Landing

Variable L/D due to large waves Current designs are not highly maneuverable in flight
[Ref. 1]

Transport profile closer to aircraft than boats

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What Small Wing in Ground Craft ARE good for: Certain Aircraft CONOPS (low altitude) Low operational cost

High Speed Range 40 knts to +200 knts Rapid ingress and egress capability Pursuit & Intercept of conventional craft Operations in shallow, hazardous Waterways (logs, mines, obstacles, etc.) Less vulnerable to torpedoes and mines Signature Advantages Nap of the earth flight; reduced radar detection range Stealth shape possible (fly by wire)
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Wing in Ground Craft are NOT Good For

Current Boat CONOPS and Mission Scenarios

Carrying comparable weight in current CONOPS; troops, armor, etc. However, WIGs can be designed to carry weight at high efficiencies / speed; high transport factors at different CONOPs Close in maneuvering at speed Tight turns in flying mode Operations in High Sea States (currently) Suitable flight within ground effect in high sea states Takeoff and landing in high Sea States
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Interdiction of Fast Boats

All Go-Fast Boats operate in the same speed regimes
Aircraft are required to intercept in reasonable time

Rapid response in a harbor or coastal area to a need

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Rapid Response over Wide Areas

Multi-mission WIG pursuit variants would not replace Navy Helicopters or fast conventional craft. It would complement and free them for more demanding missions. Lower cost to operate than a helicopter and faster than any water born craft, WIGs can traverse uncertain, shallow water, minefields, low land terrains, and can be very stealthy. Multiple units could be staged at any small base (like other boat craft) which could provide the rapid response and interception similar to aircraft over wide areas at an affordable cost.

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Existing Navy Prototype History

Universal Hovercraft developed the first flying hovercraft. The prototype first took flight in 1996 near Cordova, Illinois on the Mississippi River. Acquired by NSWCDD in CY06 for SLY FOX. Transferred to NSWCCD in CY07 from NSWCDD Restored to safe operational condition and modified for experimentation as a Navy test asset Unmanned / Manned applications Surrogate Enemy, JFCOM Empire Challenge May / June 2011
(UH owned sister craft was used; Navy craft mods not completed in time)
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Modified Universal Hovercraft Model UH-19XRW

Hovercraft mode:
Speed: 75+ mph Cruise: 50 mph Payload: 1,000 lbs Passengers: 2 Cabin: 7 x 4 Endurance: 3.5 hours Length: 19.5 feet Width: 7.5 feet Engine: 2.0 L Chevy Ecotec Supercharged

Hoverwing mode
Speed: 70 mph Cruise: 55 mph in flight Payload: 600 to 1,000 lbs in flight Passengers: 2 Endurance: 2.5 hours Length: 24.5 feet Wing Span: 22 feet Cruise altitude: 3 to 4 feet Maximum altitude: 15 to 20 feet
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Research Capabilities Supported Utility for Force Protection and Patrol

Capability vs. Cost based on hard data.

High Sea State operations Launch and Landing (elevated flight deck) Nap of the Earth Flight technology Signatures

Bogie (surrogate enemy)

Unmanned Applications Payload experiments
[Ref. 2]
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Take Off and Landing Variants

Hydroski
High Hydrodynamic Lift Poor L/D for Take Off Good for Landing

PAR (Power-Augmented-Ram)
High Thrust to Lift High Take-Off Weight/Power Low Efficiency

Hydrofoils
High Hydrodynamic Lift Good L/D for Take Off Low heave X114-H Accident

Hovercraft
Low Thrust to Lift Low Hydro & Hump Drag High Heave / Bad in Sea State Taxi over flat land & obstacles

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Nap of the Sea Flight

Average h/c 50% (.5) for IMO Ruling 19XRW cruises at 3-4 ft; SS3-4 Larger chord will be required for higher Sea State operations as class B Stability and Control Issues: Non linear dependence of aerodynamic characteristics with height

[WMO]

Stable in height Unstable in pitch

Long period (phugoid) oscillations Currently manageable by design and modern control technologies

Stable in Yaw
Zoom Turns; Flying higher and banking Flat turns; requires vertical foils
[Ref. 2]
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Pitch Stability and Solutions

Problem: The lift vector of a wing is located far aft at very small ground clearances and moves foreword when climbing out of ground effect.
Large Tail: (Ekranoplan) Increased pitch control authority Higher Drag, Most popular solution Reverse Delta Wing (Lippisch) Low CP movement and high L/D Tandem Bi-Wing Design Limited stability range Incapable of OGE Low Seaworthiness S shape Airfoil Section Reduced CP movement , Not as Efficient Canard Design Take Off Advantage (feeds air to main wing) Very efficient, Long pitch moment arm Ideal for Fly by Wire; promising, however, unstudied
[Typical] [Ref. 1]

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Angle of Attack effect on PC and Height

Large Change in Pressure Coefficient with small changes in altitude between h/c 0.08 and 0.3.
Lift varies with Close Wave Crossings leads to vibrational heave Precise control surface motion required to stay in .5 h/c average for class B Implies Higher Speeds at Low Angles of Attack in Sea State
[Ref. 2]

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Consideration of Low Flight over Waves

SS3 Waves: 3.5 to 5 ft 2.5 - 7.5 sec periods Wave length ~ 46 65 ft SS4 Waves: 6 to 7.5 ft 2.5 - 9.5 sec periods Wave length ~ 72 92 ft SS5 Waves: 8 to 12 ft 3 12 sec periods Wave length ~ 105 to 158 ft
[Ref. 3]

Flight Dynamic Frequency with Aspect: Wave Speed + Flight Speed (into Sea) Wave Speed Flight Speed (with Sea) Intelligent Control System to manage USSR operational experience Safe Operating Height:
h = 1.54 (Hs)/2 + 0.1 x chord
[Ref. 1] [See References for larger Table]

(Hs = the average of the 1/3 highest wave)

Hoverwing UH-19XRW Predicted Estimation: Efficient / Safe SS3 Operational SS4

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Fast Dynamic Control Technologies For High Sea State Prolonged Flight Elevator / Canard deflection (pitch varies) Trailing-Edge Flap dynamic deflection Dynamic Spoilers Dynamic Venting (air valves in wing) Wave Sensing K band Radar / LIDAR Ongoing current research Wave Prediction Technology Ongoing current research MIT & ONR
X-Band Radar ICX K-Band Radar Velodyne LIDAR

Height Sensing Phase Radio Altimeter (RA)

Fly By Wire (Computer controlled flight)

Acceleration in Waves

[Typical]

Take Off and Landing in a Sea State Remains an Engineering Challenge!

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Unmanned WIG Cooperative Autonomous SWARM Missions

Current Maritime Cooperative Autonomy is Maturing Obstacle Avoidance & COLREGs development

Advanced Perception, Multi-sensor Fusion Radar, Stereo EO & IR, LIDAR, Acoustic
4 USV cooperative; TW11 July HVA protection UxS CFT Oct Experiment; 4 USV Non Lethal Weapons Secure Network (certified net to JEC3) Adjustable Autonomy: Human In, On, and Out of the loop.
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USV Non-Lethal Weapons Layered Defense Manned Unmanned Integration

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10 Conclusions & Closing Thoughts

1) Small WIGS should not be applied to current boat CONOPs 2) Small WIGS promise affordable wide area rapid access & control Protected Waters near term / Open Ocean far term 3) No special basing or logistics are required and flying is easy 4) Class B status allows aircraft performance at small boat costs 5) Large WIGS for efficient material transport remain controversial 6) High Sea State operations feasible, but TO & LD is a challenge 7) High Sea States point to larger chords and higher speeds 8) Hovercraft capability is a very good solution to TO & LD drag reduction and has overland benefits 9) Intelligent lethal SWARMs of stealthy expendable WIGs fit into the DoD vision of integrated robotic warfare 10) A Next Generation combat craft..
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References / Notes
References: [1] Halloran, M. and OMeara, S. Wing in Ground Effect Craft Review DSTO-GD-0201, DSTO Aeronautical and Maritime Research Laboratory (1999). [2] Christopher Gamble, Joel Martin, Matthew Eggert, Michael Trott; U.S. Air Force Academy, Robert Butler, Steven Morris, Jean Slane; Engineering Systems Inc., Billy Crisler, Possum Works. (2008) Analysis of a Wing and Hoverwing in Ground Effect, U.S. Air Force Academy, Air Force Research Laboratory, CO

[3] Pierson, W. J.; Moscowitz, L. (1964), "A proposed spectral form for fully developed wind seas based on the similarity theory of S A Kitaigorodskii", Journal of Geophysical Research 69 (24): 5181 5190
[4] Morris, S., Butler, R., and Slane, J. Characterization of a Hovercraft (HC)/Hoverwing (HW). Aero 471 Aeronautics Laboratory Spring 2007 Research Project List.

Notes:
1) Typical For illustration purposes only 2) Unreferenced pictures and illustrations from multiple sources in the public domain

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References / Sea Spectrum

[Ref. 3]

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