Futuristic wing-in-ground effect vehicles are in development
There is a lesser-known vehicle occupying the gap between boat and aeroplane, largely forgotten for decades, but now promising to return. Wing-in-ground effect vehicles sit low on a cushion of air, capitalising on the same physics that allows a playing card to slide almost magically across a varnished table. The enormous Soviet ekranoplans of the 1960s generated much excitement but eventually faded into history, sending WIGs to wait in the wings of mainstream transport.
Today the wing-ground effect vehicle (WIG) is returning, with innovative manufacturers leveraging advanced composites and propulsion technologies for cleaner and faster passenger transport over water. The target market is huge, with 40% of the world’s population living in coastal communities at twice the average density1. New WIG technologies will need to be insured in the specialty insurance market by underwriters who can respond to the unique risk profile.
Image sources: Old Machine Press: MD-160 Lun-class Ekranoplan, Regent Craft Inc.: Viceroy Seaglider
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