The Quest For Speed at Sea

The Quest for Speed at Sea
Dennis J. Clark, William M. Ellsworth, and John R. Meyer
his paper highlights the past, present, and future of the quest for speed at sea. It outlines the
development of technologies and concepts to increase the speed of naval vehicles. Although commercial applications of high-speed marine craft flourish, the focus here is on high speed in naval missions.
A historical context details significant attempts to increase ship speed, highlighting Carderock Divisions
many contributions. The primary focus is after World War II, when the U.S. Navy began to seriously consider the value of proposed concepts for planing craft, multihulls, hydrofoils, hovercraft, and hybrids.
A discussion of current high-speed ship technologies follows, with an overview of limits and advantages,
plus a review of operational experience. Costs of development, acquisition, and operations are weighed, followed by a summary of high-speed naval vehicles potential.
Introduction
operational experience, and cost effectiveness of speed follows.

Numerous concepts employed in this quest appear in a
timeline at the bottom of each page, divided in 20-year periods. They include planing craft, multihulls, hydrofoil ships
and craft, hovercraft, and hybrids. Most of the efforts to
increase speed involve getting the hull out of the water.
Figure 1, the so-called Sustension Triangle, shows the lift
forces raising the hulls above, or partially above, the water
surface.
For more than two hundred years, numerous efforts

strove to increase the speed of waterborne craft for both
military and commercial applications. Increased speed of
naval vehicles was called for in the vision of the Navys
future set forth by the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO),
Admiral Vern Clark, in Sea Power 21. In a recent conference on Sea Power 21, the CNO addressed the quality of
persistence. In that particular context, he was referring to
persistence of combat capability, but he
could have used the term just as appropriately to refer to the persistence of technological effort described in this paper.
Persistence in the quest for speed has
involved hundreds if not thousands of
scientists and engineers over many
decades dedicated to developing new ship
and vehicle technology to give the Navy
credible high-speed options.
In the following sections, we highlight various approaches to the quest for
speed at sea and identify individuals who
made advances toward this goal possible.
We need to understand the past to baseline our knowledge. A discussion of technological limitations and advancements, Figure 1. Sustention Triangle.
CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST
DENNIS J. CLARK, WILLIAM M. ELLSWORTH, AND JOHN R. MEYER
How High-Speed Ships and Craft Advanced

Here we discuss significant craft and concepts that
advanced the quest for speed at sea over decades up to the
present. We also identify key individuals who contributed to
these advances.
Planing Craft Development
The planing hullform is perhaps the oldest, simplest,
and most extensively employed member of the family of
modern marine vehicles. As noted by Dr. Daniel Savitsky,1
modern planing hulls are designed to avoid the so-called
hump problems, demonstrate good behavior in a seaway,
have substantial useful load fractions, and have a potential
for growth to displacements up to 1,000 tons or more. These
attributes establish planing hulls as effective members of
naval units. In the period 1970 to 1983, 327 fast attack units
and 1,471 patrol craft were constructed and exported
worldwide. Their excellent cost-effectiveness ratio, simplicity of operation, miniaturized electronics, and relatively
heavy firepower attract the attention of many navies, particularly those operating in restricted waters. The modern
planing hull now has better seakeeping characteristics with
little sacrifice in calm water performance.
In the mid-1970s, the U.S. Navy undertook an
advanced planing hull research program aimed at improving seakeeping while retaining as much speed as possible
and improving the lift-to-drag ratio of the hull through the
mid-speed range. This research led to the development of
the high length-to-beam ratio, high beam loading, double
chine, and moderate dead rise hull that met all of the
requirements of good seakeeping and good lifting efficiency. This prototype hull, in a development led by Jerry Gore
at Carderock, was designated the Costal Patrol Interdiction
Craft (CPIC-X). It became the U.S. benchmark design that
met the conflicting demands for the best compromise of
high speed and sea kindliness in one hullform with minimum cost and complexity.
Unfortunately, the aggressive and successful planing
hull research program initiated in the early 1970s subsided
in the late 1970s, when the U.S. Navy decided to emphasize
acquisition of large combatants capable of transiting the
worlds oceans. With this philosophy, problems can arise
when we need to engage in limited warfare in areas where
the larger ships cannot operate close to shore, or in the inner
harbors or rivers.
Since 1990, Donald L. Blount and Associates, Inc.
(DLBA) has specialized in the design, testing, and construction of motor yachts, commercial ferries, and military ves-
sels. Blount began his career in the Carderock Planing Craft

Branch. In 1992, the motor yacht Destriero, designed by
DBLA, captured the international speed record during an
unrefueled passage from New York to England. This 67-m
vessel, which averaged a speed of 53.1 knots in the crossing,
is powered by two LM-1500 gas turbines, and is capable of a
speed of 65 knots.
With the current new interest in the U.S. Navys Littoral
Combat Ship (LCS) program, the advanced state of planing
ship technology represented by Destriero is of interest as a
candidate design for LCS. Don Blount is currently a member of the Lockheed Martin LCS Team that selected the Sea
Blade ship concept that builds on the hydrodynamic lineage
of the Destriero.
Multihull Ships
The principal advantages of most multihulls are their
greater deck area for a given length, excellent transverse stability, and potential for reduced wave-making resistance in
the high-speed range for displacement ships. These attributes make the catamaran well suited to carrying low-density cargo, for example as ferries. However, catamaran hulls
are prone to pitching, and the cross structure can be subject
to large wave impact forces in rough seas.
The concept of a multihull buoyantly supported vessel
was demonstrated at least a thousand years ago by
Polynesian seafarers. The first known catamaran in the
Western world was a sailboat built in England in 1660.
Beginning in the early 1800s, a sizeable number of steam
paddle wheel-powered catamaran ferryboats and river craft
were built there and in the U.S.2
Efforts to solve the seakeeping and ride comfort problems led, in the 1960s, to the small-waterplane-area twinhull (SWATH) ship configuration. Although the SWATH
ship is an important development with a number of desirable features, it is not currently considered a high-speed
concept and is not covered in this paper.
Catamarans
During the past decade, the catamaran concept has
been employed mainly for commercial passenger transport.
Since 1980, over 200 small high-speed catamaran ferries
were built, mainly in Australia, Norway, and Sweden.
The seakeeping of the catamaran is mixed. The high
transverse stability gives rise to pitch and roll at natural frequencies that are near each other. These frequencies, in turn,
yield motions that feel more coupled than do those of the
monohull. This effect has been described as a corkscrew
T H E Q U E S T F O R S P E E D AT S E A
motion, involving combined roll, pitch, and yaw. In the

design process, knowledge of wave statistics for the actual
operating area is vital. Model seakeeping testing in a facility
that can generate a reliable representation of wave environment is also important for developing a successful design.
Because of their effect on the resulting accelerations on
board a vehicle in a given seaway, the vessels natural periods
of pitch, heave, and roll are vital design parameters to consider. If any of the vessels natural periods are close to the
wave encounter periods expected, the synchronism can lead
to amplified motion responses.
A design feature that demands thorough evaluation is
the shape and position above the still water level of the
increasingly commonly used cross-structure center hull. In
addition to affecting vertical motions and accelerations, this
geometric feature, if designed carefully, can improve resistance performance in waves.
Semi-SWATH
A semi-Small-Waterplane-Area Twin Hull (SWATH)
ship is a combination of a SWATH ship in the forward half
and a conventional catamaran in the stern half. The combination results in vehicles with nearly equal seakeeping to a
regular SWATH ship, but with superior speed/powering
performance. The semi-SWATH ship concept also allows
the integration of waterjet propulsion, by far the preferred
choice for high-speed ferries. The catamaran-like aft sections are more suitable for machinery arrangement and
especially for integrating waterjet propulsion. Like SWATH
ships, semi-SWATH ships offer a great deal of arrangeable
deck space and exhibit low resistance up to fairly high
speeds (40+ knots).3
The first and largest semi-SWATH ship in operation is
the Stena HSS 1500 with a displacement of about 4,000
tons. Other Semi-SWATH passenger vessels are Stena HSS
900, and Seajet 250. Although not quite as sensitive as
SWATH ships, semi-SWATH ships are still somewhat sensitive to overloading and trim. The small waterplane of the
forward section makes them more susceptible, in particular,
to changes in forward trim.
In 1966, Carderock Division began a multi-year program of catamaran hydrodynamic and structural technology development to support the design of the ASR 21-class of
submarine rescue ships. By 1969, this development led to
further in-house investigations of larger catamarans as aircapable ships or small aircraft carriers.
Wave-Piercing Catamarans
The increasing need for high-speed marine transport,
coupled with the fact that passengers often experience discomfort in open ocean or exposed routes on conventional
catamarans, created a need that the wave-piercer was developed to fill. Again, this hullform has twin hulls, but they are
long and slender with minimal freeboard and little buoyancy in the bow section. This configuration allows the bows to
cut or pierce the waves, reducing the tendency of the vehicle
to contour, thus providing lower pitch motions and accelerations, while carrying similar deadweight.3
The wave-piercing catamaran started in the early 1980s,
with the development INCAT 28 m being the first to operate on a commercial route. Several companies have since
developed their own approach to this type of design. One of
the more famous wave-piercers is CONDOR II INCAT 78 m.
CONDOR II reduces heave and pitch motions and
accelerations while in bow seas. Due to the twin hulls and
the separation between them, the vehicle has good inherent
intact and damage stability. Large useable deck area results
from separation of hulls that are still large enough aft to
allow integration of waterjet propulsion and suitability for
machinery arrangements.
Due to the slenderness ratio of the hulls, these vehicles
are fairly efficient, and numerous operating vehicles provide
good statistics regarding operational characteristics.
Construction is more difficult than conventional catamarans due to structural complexity of the forward hulls. The
wide beam of wave-piercer catamarans is also an issue
where ports are not designed to harbor such vehicles. Wavepiercer catamarans may also experience lateral jerky
motions in beam seas.
Trimarans
A trimaran is a multihulled vehicle with three hulls
supported by hydrostatic and hydrodynamic lift. There are
two approaches to making a trimaran. The first approach is
to have a very slender center hull supported by two outboard hulls that are smaller in both beam and length. The
second approach is to have longer outboard hulls and a
shorter center hull forward.3
While trimarans have existed for centuries, only recently has interest arisen in pursuing them as viable options for
ferry and military applications. The appearance in 1988 of
the Ilan Voyager aroused interest in this concept. As of late,
various defense departments investigated the use of a displacement trimaran hull form for frigates and corvette-size
warships, the latest of which is the Royal Navy Triton
demonstration trimaran. This ship has an overall length of
105 m, a beam overall of 20 m, and a displacement of about

1,200 metric tons.
The attributes of trimaran hullforms include good
hydrodynamic efficiency, allowing higher speed with lower
installed power, adequate intact and damage stability characteristics, large usable deck area, good seakeeping qualities,
and good directional stability. However, they are structurally complex due to cross structures connecting the outer
hulls, and the lack of design experience entails some risk.
Also, the maneuvering characteristics of these hullforms are
relatively poor, unless the outer hulls are large enough to
accommodate individual propulsion units.
During the late 1980s, the U.S. Navy performed a series
of model tests at Carderock to investigate a variant of the
ONeill Hullform that exploited the wave cancellation
between the center body, the center surface-piercing strut,
and the two outer hulls. Reference 4 discusses this hull form
and points out that significant reductions in net total wavemaking resistance can be achieved at cruising speeds above
24 knots. The resulting powering advantage of the Wave
Cancellation Multihull can be substantial. For example, for
a 4,300-ton ship at a speed of 30 knots, the savings in effective horsepower (EHP) is between 22 and 28 percent compared to the ONeill Hullform and SWATH VII configurations. Reference 4 also shows data comparing several monohulls and the Wave Cancellation Multihull concept.
Hydrofoil Ships and Craft
One of the earliest efforts to lift the hull from the water
was by use of underwater wing-like lifting surfaces called
hydrofoils. These foils, like aircraft wings, follow the
Bernoulli principle. Air and water flowing over the curved
upper surface must move faster than that flowing beneath.
This change in the flow pattern results in low pressure on
the top surface and high pressure on the bottom surface. At
a given speed, the forces generated lift the hull out of the
water.
The Early Years

The first hydrofoil craft was the product of an accident
in 1861. Thomas William Moy, an Englishman, studied the
aerodynamics of wings by observing the vortices they created. He attached wings to his craft and tested it in the Surrey
Canal. To his surprise it rose from the water and, unintentionally, he discovered hydrofoils.
In 1909, CAPT Holden C. Richardson USN (Ret), then
a young Naval Constructor and an early seaplane designer,
sought a solution to landing aircraft on the sea. Inspired by
Enrico Forlanini in Italy, who proposed using hydrofoils as
landing gear for seaplanes, he fitted a set of submerged foils

to a dinghy. While under tow in the Philadelphia river, it
lifted from the water and flew at a speed of about 6 knots.
Richardsons efforts in hydrofoil design continued at least
until 1911.
A hydrofoil craft designed and built by the Italian aircraft designer Enrico Forlanini was the first successful such
craft manned and motor driven. In 1906, he made test runs
of a 1.6-ton craft on Lake Maggiore in Italy. The craft had a
60-HP engine driving two counterrotating air propellers,
and reached a top speed of 42.5 mph.
Alexandra Graham Bell and his co-worker and friend F.
W. (Casey) Baldwin became interested in hydrofoils as early
as 1901. During a world tour, Bell and Baldwin rode
Forlaninis boat on Lake Maggiore. On returning to
Canada, Bell purchased a license to build and develop the
Forlanini ladder-foil system in North America. With
Baldwin as designer and engineer and Bell as advisor, they
built and tested a number of hydrodomes. Bell failed to
interest the U.S. Navy in the HD-3 and turned his attention
to sailboats. With the U.S. entry into the European war,
Bells hopes for hydrofoils revived when the U.S. Navy
Department called for proposals to design and build subchasers. However, Bells offer to build two HD-4 hydrofoil
craft for that purpose was rejected. The Navy sent him two
50-HP Renault engines, and design work on an HD-4 continued and incorporated all that had been learned from previous successes and failures. With the Renault engines, the
top speed of the HD-4 was only 54 mph, but it performed
well with good stability and took waves without difficulty.
With Bells report of the success of these trials, in early 1919
the Navy sent him two 350-HP Liberty engines. Using these
engines, on 9 September 1919, HD-4 set a new worlds
marine speed record of 70.86 mph that stood for the next
decade. A year later, Bell got observers from the U.S. Navy
and the British Admiralty to watch demonstrations of HD4. Although all observers made enthusiastic reports, neither
country saw fit to place an order. Some felt such a craft was
too fragile for naval action at sea.
From 1927 to 1936, Hanns Von Schertel, a young
German engineering graduate of the Technical University in
Berlin-Charlottenburg, designed eight experimental hydrofoil craft. After several disappointing experiences, he
became convinced that the only way to ensure stability of
submerged hydrofoils was by use of an automatic lift control and a submerged depth sensor. In the late 1930s, he
teamed with Sachsenberg Shipyards in Germany to bid on
the German Navys request for proposals for a hydrofoil
craft to be used as a military personnel carrier over short
distances. The Schertel/Sachsenberg entry, designated the
VS-6, was selected, and several VS-6 models of about 15
tons were built.
Some Military Mission Applications Arise

In 1940, the German Navy gave Schertel a contract to
build a 17-ton minelayer that achieved a speed of 47 knots
in a seaway. With the beginning of WWII, Germany needed
to move tanks from Sicily to North Africa. Against the
objections of the Schertel organization, Adolph Hitler, who
had decided hydrofoils met this need, specified that work be
redirected from the 15-ton VS-6 to a tank carrier. The result
was the VS-8, an 80-ton, 105-ft long hydrofoil craft with two
1,830-HP diesel engines. It had an open well aft that could
be flooded so that a 20-ton tank could be floated in on a raft.
Three were built and one was tested, reaching a speed in
excess of 50 knots. Two of the craft were later destroyed on
the ways by bombs. The remaining VS-8 ended in grounding.
In 1952, Von Schertel moved to Lucerne, Switzerland,
taking with him the technical knowledge gained by two
decades of experience. There, he founded Supramar, AG and
designed and built the PT-10, a 10-ton, 28-passenger hydrofoil ferry. In 1953, the PT-10 demonstrated the commercial
value of hydrofoils operating on Lake Maggiore from
Switzerland to Italy. It took 48 minutes for the hydrofoil
ferry to cross the lake in contrast to regular ferries that took
3 hours. It could maintain full speed in waves up to 1.5
meters and cope with waves up to 2.5 meters with reduced
speed, but still flying.
The production of hydrofoil craft began in the Soviet
Union in 1957. Information from the various SchertelSachsenberg hydrofoil craft formed the basis for the Russian
passenger craft Myr and Strela, and the military version of
the Strela, called the Pchela. The Russians also developed
their own craft with a semi-submerged foil system for operations in rivers.
In 1966, under a U.S. Navy contract, Supramar built a
gas turbine-driven, 4-ton experimental hydrofoil with fully
submerged air-controlled foils. It attained a speed of 54
knots tested on Lake Lucerne and the Mediterranean coast.
Today, Supramar, AG remains one of the major designers
and builders of commercial hydrofoil craft.
Canada Complements U.S. Hydrofoil Program

When Canada emerged from World War II, it had the
worlds third largest navy, with anti-submarine warfare
(ASW) as its sole function. The development of the nuclear
submarine posed a severe threat because of its increased
underwater endurance and speed. This threat stimulated
major efforts in Canadian naval research. The Royal
Canadian Navy (RCN) was first to operate anti-submarine
helicopters from its destroyers and the first to develop towed
variable-depth sonar. A longer-range objective was, howev-
er, to regain the advantage of higher surface ship speed in a

seaway by the use of hydrofoil ships.
As noted by Michael Curtis Eames,5 an expert in naval
architecture and Senior Scientist at the Naval Research
Establishment Atlantic (NRE), located in Dartmouth, Nova
Scotia, the hydrofoil program of the Canadian Forces had its
origin in the pioneering work of Bell and Baldwin. Their initial aim was to develop the Bell HD-4 hydrofoil potential,
leaving the exploitation of research on other promising systems to the United States. In 1951, NRE, now Defence
Research Establishment Atlantic (DREA), undertook an
extensive hydrofoil craft development program using a number of test craft, including the 7-1/2-ton Massawippi (R-100).
An example of U.S. and Canadian cooperation took
place during these trials. The theory of supercavitating propellers had just been developed, at what is now the
Carderock Division of NSWC, by 24-year-old Marshall
Tulin. Massawippi was deemed to be an ideal test bed for
such a propeller, and one was provided. However, this first
propeller collapsed on initial takeoff. Undaunted, the
Carderock Project Officer, Dr. William B. Morgan, soon
arrived with a second, much stronger propeller and the test
was successful.
In 1958, NREs theoretical work suggested that both
Bell and Baldwin had been wrong. It was determined that
very different characteristics were required of surface-piercing foils fore and aft. The forward foil had to be responsive
to changes in immersion, but insensitive to angles of attack.
It had to act like a feeler, setting the ship to the trim required
and allowing the stern foil to anticipate the oncoming
waves. It must be an inherently inefficient foil system and
kept small. Conversely, the aft foil system required a high
lift-curve slope, but for lateral stability, it only needed to
respond to immersion changes at its ends. It must be inherently efficient, and its behavior enhanced by large span.
Thus, they concluded that a bow foil (canard) configuration
was essential to achieving good seakeeping ability with reasonable efficiency in a surface-piercing foil system.
Canada and U.S. Focus On ASW

The concept of an ASW hydrofoil ship differs from that
of hydrofoil passenger ferries intended to operate continuously at high speed from one harbor to another. The ASW
craft is expected to spend most of its operating time in hullborne operation at slow speed. As a result, hullborne seakeeping, endurance, and habitability are of vital concern.
Because of the shorter duration of foilborne operation,
behavior and reliability in severe weather are more important than extreme efficiency. Even in the foilborne mode, the
design priorities differ from those of hydrofoil ferries.
In January 1960, a group of experts from the United

States, United Kingdom, and Canada concluded that a
hydrofoil ship promised significant improvement in ASW
capability. The hydrofoil concept was technically sound,
and it complemented the hydrofoil development then
underway in the U.S. Navy that involved fully-submerged
actively-controlled foil systems. At this point, the Canadian
Naval Board recommended proceeding with design and
construction of a 200-ton ship, designated the FHE-400
(Fast Hydrofoil Escort).
Hull construction of the FHE-400, designed by
DeHavilland Aircraft, was begun at Marine Industries Ltd.,
Sorel in 1964, and was completed in 1965. The hull was
erected upside down to permit maximum use of downhand welding of aluminum, and large sections of the shell
were welded as sub-assemblies. Unfortunately, in the final
stages of outfitting, in November 1966, a major fire broke
out in the engine room during tests of the auxiliary gas turbine. The center of the ship essentially had to be rebuilt. It
was not until July 1968 that the ship could be transferred to
Halifax on the slave dock (a floating barge) that served as
her maintenance base.
From September 1968 to July 1971, the ship, christened
Bras-DOr, logged 552 hours hullborne and 96 hours foilborne in trials. Regrettably, significant rough-water data
were small in number. However, hullborne seakeeping was
exceptionally good. Foilborne, under full load, she exceeded
her calm water design speed, achieving 63 knots in 3- to 4ft waves. She took off and landed smoothly, and exhibited
good stability and control at all speeds.
In July 1969, with the ship docked to repair persistent
foil-system leaks, a large crack was discovered in the lower
surface of the center main foil. When the neoprene coating
was removed, an extensive network of cracks was found. A
new foil element was installed, but in July 1971 this foil also
developed severe cracking. Clearly, the use of extremely
high yield-strength maraging steel was a major problem due
to stress-corrosion cracking.
A decision was made in October 1971 to lay up the
ship. However, this decision was not due to the structural
problem with the foils, but rather was due to a change in
defense policy issued in August 1971. This change in policy
assigned priority not to ASW, but to the protection of sovereignty and the surveillance of Canadian territory and
coastlines. This decision would place the ASW hydrofoil
ship behind at least three major procurement programs for
the Maritime Command. As a result, on 2 November 1971,
the Minister of National Defence announced in the House
of Commons: A decision has been made by the department
to lay up the hydrofoil Bras DOr for a five-year period.
Unfortunately, circumstances never occurred to restore the
ship to active service and the FHE-400 eventually became a

museum display sitting on its slave dock.
The U.S. Navy Begins Exploratory Research Program

During the early 1950s, the U.S. Navy demonstrated
various experimental craft.6 A common remark was This is
a lot of fun, but what would the Navy ever do with hydrofoils? This viewpoint seemed to permeate the entire early
history of U.S. Navy hydrofoil development. The Marine
Corps complaint that the speed of approaching the beach
had not changed since William the Conqueror headed for a
beach in 1066 sparked the Navys interest in hydrofoil landing craft. As a result, a program began in 1954 to evaluate a
hydrofoil-supported landing craft designated the LCVP. A
request for proposals (RFP) for an LCVP hydrofoil was
released by the Navy. An enthusiastic experimenter with
hydrofoil craft, Christopher Hook, joined Bob Johnston,
President of Miami Shipbuilding Corporation, to respond
to the RFP. To the Navys surprise, they won the competition. The LCVP was called Halobates, named for a sea-going
insect with forward-extending feelers. One of the requirements of the design was that the craft be capable of flying in
shallowing water. As it approached the beach for a landing,
the foils were retractable with diminishing foil depth, with
a continuous transition from foilborne to hullborne as the
water shoaled. During flight test, Halobates reached speeds
up to 34 knots in five-foot waves. Its performance was
demonstrated over a range of weights from 23,290 to 31,165
pounds. The Navy disagreed with the use of the large feeler
arms and considered them quite impractical. Fortunately, a
Miami Shipbuilding electronic autopilot was ready to go. A
step resistance, on the leading edge of the forward struts,
provided a height signal. The Navy also became interested
in the use of lightweight gas turbine engines. As a result,
when an electronic autopilot was installed in Halobates, an
AVCO T-53 gas turbine was also installed.
From 1951 to 1954, funds were budgeted to build a
3,500-ton hydrofoil cargo carrier with a destroyer-type hull.
The Office of Naval Research (ONR) was given Navy program management responsibility supported by the Bureau
of Ships, Bureau of Aeronautics, and NSWC Carderock. The
basic research was undertaken by the Hydrofoil
Corporation of America, a non-profit organization formed
by Dr. Vannevar Bush, President of the Carnegie Institution
and scientific advisor to the President of the United States.
LCDR Patrick Leehy was designated Project Officer in
ONR. CDR Robert Johnston later replaced him. In 1954, it
was concluded that the development of a propulsion system
for a 3,500-ton hydrofoil might tax the total capability of
U.S. industry. On this note, the project was terminated.
A small 5-ton, modified Chris-Craft perhaps did the

most to interest the U.S. Navy in the future potential of
hydrofoil craft. The craft had its genesis in the 1950s at the
naval architecture firm of Gibbs & Cox. They assembled a
hydrofoil team headed by Tom Buerman that included Dr.
John Breslin, Dr. S.F. Hoerner, L.E. Sutton, and Richard
Browne. In 1954, Sutton and Browne were assigned to
supervise construction of an autopilot-stabilized test craft
that was to become Sea Legs. It had a 28.5-ft hull with a 9.0ft beam, full-load weight of 10,550 lbs. The foils were aluminum with a German section and were arranged in a
canard configuration. For the autopilot, Richard Browne
started with the basic technology developed by the Draper
Laboratory of MIT and assembled a practical working
autopilot with 160 vacuum tubes. For the height signal, it
utilized a sonic height sensor. The autopilot and height sensor were significant technical advances.
Sea Legs first flight in 1957 was impressive.7 The
autopilot stabilized the craft in rough seas and it achieved
speeds up to 27 knots. After Navy personnel witnessed the
trials in the New York area during late 1957 and early 1958,
Sea Legs got underway to Washington, DC. During the transit in the open ocean, accompanied by the U.S. Navys PT812, Sea Legs averaged 23 knots in 4 to 5-ft waves. The
hydrofoil craft demonstrated seakeeping and performance
absolutely impossible for conventional boats of the same, or
even larger size. Those aboard reported a dry, comfortable
ride, while conditions on the PT-812 were quite different
indeed. Three Navy Commanders, William Nicholson,
Randolph King, and Kenneth Wilson headed this adventure.
When Sea Legs arrived in Washington, a number of interested military and government personnel were embarked for
further demonstrations. They included the CNO, Admiral
Arleigh Burke.
In 1962 and 1963, Sea Legs underwent more detailed
evaluation by the Carderock Division. It was extensively
instrumented and provided at-sea data for future designs.
This small boat was the single most important forerunner of
the U.S. Navys decision to get serious about the use of
hydrofoil ships and craft in the future Navy fleet. In recognition of its importance, Sea Legs is presently on exhibit in
the Mariner Museum in Newport News, VA.
The U.S. Navy Gets Serious

With the growing momentum generated by the
expanding technology base, and the demonstrated attributes of hydrofoils for naval missions, the Bureau of Ships
Preliminary Design Branch began a design study, in late
1957, of hydrofoils for ASW. This study was strongly influenced by Canadas development of the hydrofoil ASW ship
FHE-400. In a letter dated 24 January 1958, OPNAV

requested BuShips to study a hydrofoil for harbor defense
and coastal patrol. Designated the PC(H), when compared
to the sub chasers PC(S) and SC, it appeared capable of performing the mission of these patrol craft in a superior manner. As a result, the PC(H) was substituted for the PC(S) and
SC in the FY60 shipbuilding program. With the blessing of
OPNAV, PC(H) design work continued until March 1959
when the preliminary design was completed. Based on the
experience with Sea Legs, the selected design was a fullysubmerged, autopilot-controlled foil system in a canard
configuration. It was thus that the many years of hydrofoil
research finally bore fruit with the design and acquisition of
what was expected to be the U.S. Navys first operational
hydrofoil ship.
The contract plans and specifications for PCH were
turned over to BuShips Code-526, the Mine, Service, and
Patrol Craft Branch, otherwise known as the Type Desk.
The contract for detailed design and construction was to be
bid on a competitive, fixed-price basis. In June 1960, The
Boeing Company in Seattle, WA was awarded a contract for
a fixed price of $2.08 million to do detailed design and construction. Boeings research and entry into hydrofoil programs began in 1958 with in-house funding. A Marine
Group was formed in 1959 as part of the Aerospace
Division. Later it became Boeing Marine Systems. Hull lofting began in the Fall of 1960 at Martinac Shipyard in
Tacoma, WA. The ship, designated the PCH-1, was launched
in conventional fashion the evening of 17 August 1962, and
christened High Point, after High Point, NC.
In retrospect, it seems no surprise that the builders trials, post-delivery tribulations, special performance trials,
and final acceptance trials, clearly demonstrated that the
ship was not ready, and possibly might never be ready, for
delivery to the fleet. This fact was finally recognized, and
OPNAV made the decision to transfer the ship to NSWC
Carderock to continue development of the technology base
for design of naval hydrofoil craft and ships. The following
twenty years of the PCH-1 trials, modifications, and exploration of mission applications appear in detail in
Reference 8.
In 1961, BuShips initiated the Hydrofoil Accelerated
Research Program (HARPY) directed toward bigger, better,
and faster hydrofoil ships. James Schuler, Hydrofoil
Program Manager, initially directed the program with assistance from Owen Oakley and Ralph Lacey in Code 420. The
need for a high-speed test craft to investigate sub-cavitating,
ventilated, and super-cavitating foil systems was evident. In
June 1961, BuShips awarded a contract to Boeing to design
and construct a high-speed test craft that could be highly
instrumented and propelled at speeds up to 100 knots. This
craft, named FRESH-1 (Foil Research Hydrofoil), was

launched on 8 February 1963. Powered by an aircraft turbine engine on 3 May 1963, it attained a speed of 80 knots.
FRESH-1 characteristics and test operations appear in
Reference 9. During one of its trial runs, in a turn, the craft
became unstable due to foil ventilation and capsized.
Fortunately, there were no casualties. As a result of the
Navys decision to delay, CNO Admiral Zumwalts quest for
a 100-knot Navy, FRESH-1 was laid up.
On 10 November 1966, NSWC Carderock established
the Hydrofoil Special Trials Unit (HYSTU) as a tenant
activity of the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (PSNS). It was
staffed by LCDR Karl Duff, USN as the Officer in Charge,
and a number of technical and administrative personnel.
The Officer in Charge of HYSTU, and the assigned hydrofoil ships were administratively assigned to CO&D
Carderock with local control by COM 13 in Seattle. Civilian
personnel were responsible to the Technical Manager of the
Hydrofoil Development Program Office at NSWC
Carderock.
During the period when PCH-1 was under construction, the Navy contracted with the Grumman Corporation
for the design of the 320-ton hydrofoil ship AGEH-1.10
Lockheed Shipbuilding in Seattle, WA constructed it. The
ship, christened Plainview, after Plainview, TX and NY, was
delivered to the Navy in 1969. At that time it was the largest
hydrofoil ship in the world. It was originally planned as an
ASW ship and was designed to achieve speeds of 90 to 100
knots. However, due to experiences with other hydrofoils,
the decision was made to install only two LM-1500 gas turbines with space available for adding two more, thus limiting the speed to a nominal 50-60 knots. Also, rather than
deploying the ship to the fleet, it was assigned to the
Carderock Hydrofoil Special Trials Unit for additional R&D
trials.
The first U.S. Navy operational hydrofoils delivered to
the fleet were the patrol gunboat hydrofoils (PGHs). Two
PGHs were built, one by Grumman, Flagstaff (PGH-1), and
one by Boeing, Tucumcari (PGH-2). Although designed and
built to the same performance specifications, their configurations were substantially different. PGH-1 was propeller
driven and had a conventional foil distribution. PGH-2 was
waterjet propelled and had a canard foil system. They were
delivered to the Navy in 1968 and both saw service in
Vietnam, making them the first U.S. Navy hydrofoils in
combat. The operational experience gained with these
hydrofoils, particularly the Tucumcari, provided the confidence necessary to proceed with the Patrol Hydrofoil Missile
(PHM) ship program.
10
NATO Navies Join Hydrofoil Program

In 1972, three NATO navies formally agreed to proceed
with the joint development of a high-speed hydrofoil combatant. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was
signed by the United States, Federal Republic of Germany,
and Italy. A letter contract was awarded to the Boeing
Company for a feasibility study, and the design and construction of two Patrol Combatant Missile (Hydrofoil)
Ships.11 Although the initial contract called for two lead
ships, program cost growth in August 1974 forced suspension of the work on the second ship. PHM-2 was later incorporated into the production program. Nearly six years
elapsed from the signing of the letter contract for the design
and construction of the lead ship, PHM-1, in November
1971. She was commissioned as USS Pegasus in July 1977. It
was not until 1981 and 1982 that the five additional PHMs
joined the PHM-1 to form the desired squadron of six ships.
The PHM Squadron was based in Key West, FL and assigned
to support the U.S. Coast Guard in intercepting drug smugglers who were using high speed Cigarette boats.11 Their
operational experience is described in a following section.
To the dismay of the advocates of Naval hydrofoil ships, on
30 July 1993 at the Naval Amphibious Base, Little Creek, VA,
the Navy decommissioned the entire Class of PHMs in one
day, the first such act in naval history. The ships were in
mint condition, had fulfilled all expectations for their performance, and had another 15 years of useful life. The Coast
Guard indicated they would be glad to take over the
squadron, but the Navy had to provide the operating funds.
The Navy refused. In time, except for one of the ships, all
others were sold for scrap. Since that time, the Navy has not
operated hydrofoil ships.
U.S. Navy Hydrofoil Effort Focused On Design Concepts

Since the mid-1980s, advancement of hydrofoil concepts in the U.S. Navy has been restricted essentially to
paper studies, although subsystem technologies have continued to advance. Even though currently there are no
hydrofoil ships in the U.S. Naval fleet, interest continues in
developing the technology and improving the subsystems
for these ships. The hydrofoil community, of which
Carderock is a major contributor, continues to carry out
conceptual studies and feasibility designs of relatively large
hydrofoil ships to suit a variety of mission applications. In
this respect, a fundamental limitation impacts the growth
potential of hydrofoil ships. It is the square-cube law that
states the lift developed by foils is proportional to their plan
form area (the square of a linear dimension), whereas the
weight to be supported is proportional to the volume (the
cube of a linear dimension). Thus, as the size of the ship
increases, the foils tend to outgrow the hull. Early developers felt that this phenomenon limited hydrofoil ships to relatively small sizes compared to the blue water Navy.
Smaller size might have been one of the reasons why the
Navy earlier had decided to abandon the hydrofoil.
However, further design studies show that foil system
weight fractions increase only slightly with ship displacement because strut length varies with the design sea state,
not ship size. Also, larger foils are structurally more efficient,
and advances in materials technology produced significantly lower foil weight fractions.
The largest hydrofoil ships built to date are the 320-ton
Plainview, and the 420-ton Russian Bobachka. In recent
years, however, a number of large hydrofoil designs
appeared:
Corvette Escort 615 long tons, length 196 ft, foil
span 58 ft
DBH Developmental (Damn) Big Hydrofoil.
Several designs of a nominal 750-ton ship for transoceanic mission, length 173 ft, foil span 60 ft, 50
knots
NATO/U.S. Navy Hydrofoil 780 tons, length 216 ft,
foil span 76 ft
Boeing Hydrofoil Ocean Combatant (HOC) 1,250
tons, length 200 ft, foil span 70 ft, 50 knots in SS 5
Boeing HY-7 (Model 1026-010) 970 tons, length
198 ft, foil span 82 ft, 50 knots, 70 knots dash
Grumman HYD-2 2,400 tons, length 365 ft, foil
span 116 ft, 51.5 knots in SS 6
Hovercraft offer another way to raise the hull above the

water surface by supporting it on a cushion of air. In this
section, the term hovercraft is used generically to describe
both amphibious Air Cushion Vehicles (ACVs) and nonamphibious Surface Effect Ships (SES), which use side hulls
to contain the air cushion. These hovercraft are treated in
separate sub-sections.
Corporation (BHC), designed by a team of engineers headed by R. Stanton-Jones, the craft was designated the SR.N1
and was demonstrated on 19 July 1959, near Dover,
England. The craft hovered some two feet above the water of
the English Channel, traveling up on the land and back out
over the water. Cockerell called his invention the hovercraft. Another English inventor, C. H. Latimer-Needham,
decided to try a different design and added a skirt to contain the jets of air that allowed the craft to rise higher above
the surface. The trials and tribulations of this development
are described in Reference 12. In the same period, research
occurred in the U.S. along similar lines. Dr. Harvey R.
Chaplin, Head of the Carderock Aerodynamics Laboratory,
was responsible for most of the basic research on air cushion craft, which began in May 1957.
BH.7, the first of three craft built by BHC specifically
for military missions, was launched on 31 October 1969. It
had a nominal gross weight of 45 tons and accommodated
70 fully-equipped troops, with a maximum calm water
speed of 65 knots.
A significant milestone in air cushion craft resulted
when, on 6 April 1978, the BHC Super 4 (a 300-ton
stretched version of the 170-ton SR.N4 ferry with a 55-foot
section added amidships) was launched. The worlds largest
hovercraft at that time, it carried 416 passengers and 60 cars
over distances up to 150 miles.
In the U.S., almost the entire development of air cushion craft was focused on high speed, high-density craft. In
the early 1960s, several companies explored a range of forms
including plenum, side hull, recirculation, labyrinth seal,
and others. Both ONR and BuShips began studies of military applications. The most successful venture during this
period was the BuShips-sponsored SKMR-1, designed and
built by Bell Aerospace Textron in 1963. At that time, it was
the largest such craft in the U.S., with a gross weight of 22 to
28 tons, depending on the payload, and a calm water speed
of 70 knots. It later added 4-foot skirts.
In the mid to late 1960s, the U.S. Army operated three
small ACVs designated SK-5s by the supplier, Bell
Aerospace. Based on the U.K. SR.N5, they proved to be
extremely valuable assets during the Vietnam conflict.
Modern Development Of Air Cushion Vehicles Begins

As early as the 1700s, interest appeared in another way
to raise a craft above the surface of the water by lifting it on
a cushion of air. Various ideas circulated over the years until
1955 when modern development began. In that year, the
English inventor Christopher Cockerell (ultimately knighted for his achievements) developed the first annular jet
craft. Built by Saunders-Roe Ltd., now British Hovercraft
U.S. Army Requires Air Cushion Vehicle (ACV)

With the publication of the TransHydro study in 1973,
the Army requirement for an amphibious air cushion lighter
was born. By June 1974, a required operational capability
(ROC) was approved by the Department of the Army for a
20- to 30-ton payload, 40-knot, fully amphibious air cushion vehicle, designated the Lighter Air Cushion Vehicle, 30ton payload (LACV-30). In 1975, the Army bought two pro-
Hovercraft Include Amphibious Craft and Non-Amphibious

Ships
11
totype LACV-30s. They were an adaptation of Bell Aerospace

Textrons commercial ACV Voyageur with major improvements. Two Pratt & Whitney ST6T-76 twin-pack gas turbine
engines, rated at 1,800 SHP, powered them. They each drove
three-bladed, 9-foot diameter, Hamilton Standard variablepitch propellers. Based on the experience with these two prototypes, the Army purchased a total of 26 LACV-30s.
Although the LACV-30 fulfilled a major need in the
Army Logistics Over The Shore (LOTS) requirement, some
requirements remained unmet. The transportation of
heavy, outsize cargo quickly exceeded the LACV-30 capability. The Army approved a Letter of Agreement for a LAMPH on 24 May 1982. The LAMP-H was required to transport
heavy equipment, LOTS support equipment, the M-1 tank,
tracked and wheeled vehicles, 20- and 40-ft containers, and
general cargo. In response to these requirements, the Army
evaluated four candidate concepts: the Marine Corps LCAC,
a modified U.K. SR.N4 ferry, an air cushion barge, and a
modified LACV-30.
The Army operated the LACV-30s up until the mid
1990s. Most of these were ultimately turned over to a Native
Alaskan corporation that continues to lease them to meet
requirements in Alaska.
Navy and Marine Corps Begin LCAC Program

The Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) is a dramatic
innovation in modern amphibious warfare technology. It
provides the capability to launch an assault from over the
horizon, thereby decreasing the risk to ships and personnel
and creating uncertainty for the enemy as to where the
assault might occur.
In the 1965-1970 period, the U.S. Navy and Marine
Corps undertook studies of the application of the air cushion principal to improve amphibious landing craft. Two craft
were designed and constructed: the JEFF (A) by Aerojet
General Corporation, and the JEFF (B) by Bell Aerospace. In
October 1977, Carderock established the Assault Landing
Craft Experimental Trials Unit in Panama City, FL for the
purpose of testing these two air cushion prototypes. The Jeff
(B) was launched on 17 December 1977 and made its first
trial run reaching a speed of 42 knots. The Jeff (A) made its
first run at Panama City, FL on 17 October 1978.
Based on the results of these trials, Bell Aerospace
Textron was awarded a contract in 1981 to begin the production of the Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC). These
craft are powered by four Avco-Lycoming TF40B gas turbines, each rated at 3,955 SHP (two for propulsion and two
for lift). The craft are capable of carrying a 60-ton payload
and 75 tons in overload. They can carry a main battle tank,
with a range of 200 nautical miles at 40 knots with payload
12
in sea state 2, and 300 nautical miles at 35 knots without

payload. Four LCACs can be carried in the LSD 41 class and
3 in the LSD 36 class.
On 29 June 1987, the LCAC was approved for full production. Textron was awarded a contract to deliver 48 craft
through FY 1989. Lockheed Shipbuilding was also selected
as a second source. As of 1995, 82 LCACs were delivered.
The largest deployment of LCACs took place in January
1981 with 4 detachments of 11 craft reported for duty in the
Persian Gulf in support of Operation Desert Storm.
As of this date, 92 LCACs have been delivered, and
Textron Marine and Land Systems is currently under contract to perform a Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) to
extend the crafts life beyond 20 years.
Why Surface Effects Ships (SES)?

Although the Surface Effect Ship (SES) has a number of
unique advantages, the principal motivation behind the
concept is that the air cushion, which supports the majority
of the weight of the craft, significantly reduces the resistance
to forward motion at high speed. It also helps to mitigate the
effect on craft motions and accelerations when operating in
rough seas. Although power is required to create and sustain
the air cushion, the reduction in resistance is so large at high
speed that the sum of lift and propulsion power is significantly less than that for the equivalent monohull.
SES Development Begins

In 1959, Ted Tattersall in the U.K. initiated development of the first solid sidewall hovercraft, later called the
SES. At about the same time in the U.S., a small team led by
Allen Ford, at the Naval Air Warfare Research Department
of the Naval Air Development Center (NADC), invented a
similar concept called the Captured Air Bubble. This hovercraft had rigid sidewalls that penetrated the water surface
and contained an air cushion between them sealed fore and
aft with bow and stern seals. Ford claimed that, despite the
loss of amphibious capability, the design resulted in a much
higher lift-to-drag ratio due to the reduction of air leakage.
The Tattersall team, with the backing of William Denny
& Bros., licensees of Hovercraft Development Limited, built
the first U.K. 70-foot manned model with a cushion Lengthto-Beam (L/B) ratio of 7:1. It had a weight of 5 tons and was
powered by two 35-HP Mercury outboard motors.
Introduced on 22 June 1961 as the D.1, the craft made 18
knots and lifted the cross-structure above the surface of the
water. It was successful enough to lead to the building of the
70-passenger, 20-knot GRP SES D.2 that went into experimental passenger service in 1963.
In the U.S., Allen Ford launched the XR-1 in May 1963.

It was 50 feet long, weighed 10 tons, and was propelled by a
J-79 jet engine. The crafts Length-to-Beam (L/B) was 3.5
and, with a more powerful J-85 engine, it achieved a speed
of 60 knots. In 1965, Ford joined Harvey Chaplin at
Carderock. His original design went through eight major
modifications leading up to the XR1-E, some 22 years later.
Four were built as commercial ferries capable of carrying 70
passengers at a speed of 27 knots, subsequently modified to
give a maximum speed of 34 knots.
Although the top speed of early operational SESs was
less than 40 knots, the historical thrust was to develop an
80- to 100-knot capability. In 1969, design and construction
contracts were awarded to Aerojet General for the SES 100A and to Bell Aerospace for the SES 100-B test craft. Both of
these 100-ton craft were extensively operated, and validated
their architectural and engineering technologies and subsequent modifications. The SES 100-B established a sustained
speed record of 91.9 knots in a slight chop on Lake
Ponchartrain, and also operated at 35 knots in 6- to 8-foot
waves. In 1978, the SES 100-A served as a scale model for the
design and construction of the Navys 3,000-ton, 80-knot
prototype, called the 3K SES. Unfortunately, the 3K SES
program was terminated in December 1979, just three
weeks before beginning hull construction and after an
expenditure of over $400 million. This termination, based
mainly on the lack of a mission for a large prototype, frustrated the thrust for a 100-knot Navy.
The SES-200: Exploring New Geometries

Military applications of SESs required examination of
the early geometry. Low L/B ratios and thin side hulls characterized most of the early SESs. They were designed to
operate almost exclusively on cushion at high post-primary
hump drag speeds. This design proved to be efficient for
ferry operation but not for military applications.
In the late 1970s, Bell Aerospace joined with Halter
Marine to build the BH-110 SES as a shuttle to serve oil rigs
in the Gulf of Mexico. Together they built four of these craft.
Unfortunately, the 1970s moratorium on oil drilling in the
Gulf resulted in a loss of this market. They tried to find new
customers about the time the 3K-SES program was terminated. The focus of Navy SES interest turned to lower technology and somewhat lower speed. Bell Halter developed
Coast Guard interest in a small, fast cutter to deal with drug
smuggling Cigarette boats in the Florida Keys. A cooperative trials program was conducted by the Navy and the
Coast Guard using a BH-110 for about a year. This program
resulted in sufficient interest for the Navy to acquire one
BH-110, and for the Coast Guard to acquire the other three.
In the early 1980s, in order to advance the technology

base of high L/B SES craft, the Navy awarded Bell a contract
to stretch their BH-110 with a 50-foot extension of the hull.
This craft was designated the SES-200, which was about
200-tons displacement. Bell also installed a prototype ride
control system. The result of the stretch to a higher L/B ratio
gave better seakeeping and a lower operating cost below the
primary hump. Special note is made of this craft because of
its extensive employment in advancing the SES technology
base.
In late 1984, the NAVSEA SES Program Office was disestablished. The SES-200 and the Patuxent River Test
Facility were transferred to Carderock in an attempt to keep
the SES technology program alive. Jack Offutt was put in
charge of the crafts operation, which continued from
January 1985 until 1990. Joint trials were run with the Coast
Guard and CINCLANTFLT deployments in fleet exercises
and as a test platform for live-fire exercises. The craft also
made port calls in the Caribbean. It then was deployed to
the NATO Special Working Group and was involved with
trials for the U.K., France, Spain, Canada, and Norway in the
198486 timeframe. After the NATO deployment, the craft
was re-engined with high-speed diesels and waterjet pumps,
and trials at higher speeds were conducted.
In circa 1990, management responsibility for SES-200
was transferred to the Carderock Combatant Craft
Department in Norfolk, VA. The attempt to find additional
customers was not successful, and the craft became a liability without funds for maintenance and operation.
Discussions of alternatives were held with ONR, and it was
decided that the craft could be used for a program at Pacific
Marine Navatek in Hawaii, under Steve Loui. They were
looking for a way to test lifting body technology on a large
scale. SES-200 was given to Loui to modify for a test as a
Hydrofoil Small Waterplane Area Catamaran (HYSWAC).
The hull was modified to a catamaran with a lifting body. As
of this writing, it has been undergoing a hull modification
in the shipyard, and tests are expected to begin in the summer of 2003.
SES Design and Construction Expands

In the decade of the 1980s, there was a worldwide
expansion in the design, construction, and operation of
hundreds of SESs, primarily as commercial ferries with
some military applications. Most were relatively small (less
than 200 tons) with operating speeds of 25 to 40 knots. The
European experience definitely proved the economic feasibility of SES ferries.
In the early 1980s, a contract was awarded to Textron
Marine Systems for a number of U.S. Navy GRP SES Mine
13
Countermeasure Craft (MSH). The contract was terminated before construction of the first craft. At this same time,
the Navy also developed the concept of a SES Special
Warfare Craft Medium (SWCM). A contract was awarded to
Rohr Marine (RMI) but terminated before construction of
the first craft. During this period, the technology lead transferred back to Europe, with the SES concept being aggressively pursued for commercial and military applications.
Notably, in 1987, the Swedish Defence Material
Administration (FMV) initiated a comprehensive SES R&D
program involving a number of Swedish firms and government agencies. This program led to a building contract with
Karlskronavarvet AB for the stealth test craft Testrigg Smyge.
This craft was aimed at evaluation of stealth optimization,
new weapons systems, cored GRP construction, the SES
concept, and waterjet propulsion for future MCMs and
combatant craft. Construction was completed in 1991.
The great proliferation of SES craft up to 1991 is extensively covered in the Lavis and Spaulding paper, Reference
13. Significant developments in SES ships and craft during
the last decade are provided by Robert A. Wilson, one of the
pioneers on the Carderock SES technical team. He is coholder of six patents relative to SES, and from 1965 to 1980
was Deputy Head of the SES Division in the Aviation and
SES Department. He retired from the Carderock Division in
1996. Since then, he has continued to follow worldwide
developments of surface effect ships and craft.
Development of SESs is continuing in Scandinavia and
Japan. The Swedes and the Norwegians brought along the
concepts that resulted in the HMS Smyge. It demonstrated
the ability of the shape to reduce signatures. Also, the
Norwegian Cirrus passenger ferries proved popular in service on the fjords north of the Arctic Circle, and in other
areas.
UMO Mandal is using SES technology as the basis for
its design and construction of naval vehicles, particularly
Mine Countermeasure Vessels (MCMVs) and Fast Patrol
Boats (FPBs). The MCMVs are specially fitted for minehunting and minesweeping. The rationale for selecting the
SES concept is its lower acoustic and magnetic signatures,
higher tolerance of underwater explosions, improved sonar
conditions, higher strength-to-weight ratio, shallow draft,
precise maneuvering, good seakeeping in heavy weather,
high speed and low noise levels, and improved crew comfort
compared to other concepts. UMO Mandal is currently
building four SES minehunters and five SES minesweepers
for the Royal Norwegian Navy.
UMO Mandals Skjold-Class Fast Patrol Boats are similar in design to the MCMVs, but are smaller and faster. Like
the Smyge, the Sjkold-Class capitalizes on the adaptability of
the SESs hull and materials used to reduce the radar signa-
14
ture. They have delivered one prototype FPB to the Royal

Norwegian Navy and have an option for production of a
series of another seven units.
SES development is underway in Japan since the 1970s,
with two SES development teams. One team was from the
Japan Defense Agency, whose goal was a missile boat; the
other team was from the Japanese Ministry of
Transportation, whose development target was a cargo carrier. The Ministry of Transportation developed the TSL-A
under the Techno Super Liner program. This test platform
was named Hisyo. After its initial trials, Hisyo was sold to
the Shizuoka Prefecture Office and, after some modifications, used as a ferry boat or in an emergency as a rescue
boat. The Japanese Defense Agency built two test platforms
named Meguro and Meguro-2.
The positive experience with the TSL-A was its good
seaworthiness, giving the Japanese the confidence that a
large SES could be used commercially around Japan if its
length was over 100 meters. On the other hand, the negative
experiences were the difficulty of manufacturing, the maintenance of the large fore and aft seals, and the expensive cost
compared to a monohull high-speed ferry with the same
capacity. Nevertheless, Mitsui is designing, and plans to
construct, a large SES ferry for cars, trucks, and passengers.
This ferry is nominally 140 meters long with a displacement
greater than 1,000 tons, and cruises at 30-35 knots. Its oneway operating time is expected to be 14 hours including
multiple stops. The projected launch date is in 2004.
Is there a future for the SES in the U.S.? U.S. SES commercial derivatives such as the Air Ride Craft, Inc. ferry concept exist. Also, the Navys current Littoral Combat Ship
(LCS) competition states the need for a low-cost, fast, highendurance, small surface combatant. This competition has
produced one SES concept. The National Defense Magazine
notes that Raytheon is offering a composite SES, and they
have teamed with UMO Mandal to capitalize on their experience. The article notes, the Skjold design is impressive,
despite some risk. Scandinavian countries have been notorious for taking new hullforms and proving them out. Only
time will tell if the SES comes back to the country that
developed the technology.
Hybrid Hull Forms Offer New Possibilities

Hybrid ship hullforms are those in which total lift in
the operating or cruise mode is derived from a combination
of buoyancy, air cushion lift, or foil dynamic lift. Hybrid
forms offer hydrodynamic efficiency and improved seakeeping characteristics, while retaining the relative simplicity of
conventional monohulls and multihulls. Developments in
this arena proceed rapidly; new variations are on the worlds

drawing boards now. Compared to conventional monohulls
and even to the so-called advanced vehicle forms, hybrid
ship concepts are relatively new.
A considerable gap in time occurred between the early
studies of hybrid ship forms at Carderock in the 1970s and
the proliferation of hybrid commercial vehicle designs.
Early U.S. Navy studies were oriented toward military applications that included a full range of missions using various
size ships from small patrol craft to 4,000-ton frigates. The
technology matured through analytical studies, feasibility
designs, computer simulations, and model tests in developing, as an example, the Hydrofoil Small Waterplane Area
Ship (HYSWAS) hull form. The concept provides considerable potential improvement over current small monohulls
in terms of maximum speed, motions in rough water, and
range at high speed. Compared to the conventional hydrofoil, with a fully-submerged foil system, the hybrid hydrofoil
concept has the potential for considerable range improvement as a tradeoff for very high-speed capabilities. A 12ton, 27-ft HYSWAS vessel called Quest was a key element in
the demonstration of the technology. The craft had exceptional seakeeping performance and demonstrated superior
motions through six-foot seas at 30 knots. Also, the Japanese
(Kawasaki), Techno-Superliner (TSL-F) prototype, a variant
of HYSWAS, having a displacement of 45 tons, a length of
56 ft, and a beam of 20 ft, was successfully tested. Another
variation of HYSWAS was a ferry design by E. Mohr that
employed two side floaters connected to the superstructure
by hydraulically operated, telescoping pistons. This feature
is used to minimize the draft of the vessel when hullborne.
Other hybrid forms include the Hydrofoil Catamaran
(HYCAT), the Hydrofoil-Supported Catamaran (HYSUCAT), the Hypercat by Mitsui, the Catafoil by the University
of Stellenbocsch, and the Hitachi Superjet-30. Other designs
include basically catamaran hulls with foils supporting a
portion of the full-load weight of the vessel when at operating speeds, while the hulls continue to support the vessel
with their buoyancy. However, International Catamaran
Designs Pty Ltd introduced a Trifoil concept. This hybrid
form uses a foil system combined with a trimaran hull.
More recently, Techman of Norway and Island Engineering
have designed, built, and tested a demonstrator vehicle
employing a trimaran hull and fully-submerged foil system.
In this hull form, the outer two hulls are clear of the free
surface, whereas the center hull remains partially buoyant in
the operating mode.
Many variations to the hybrid ship theme exist, and we
must appreciate that no single design or arrangement is
best. The naval architect must deal with the requirements
whether they are military or commercial. If shallow draft
and modestly rough water are to be encountered, some of

the hybrids described above are more appropriate than others. If relatively deep draft, compared to other AMVs and
monohulls, can be tolerated, and open-ocean rough-water
tolerance is a must, then the designs featuring single or double lower hulls with fully submerged foils appear to be more
promising in overall performance. As we enter the 21st century, the question isto what degree and at what pace will
naval ships adopt this technology? Commercial interests are
leading the way in this field, and the U.S. Navy may end up
with a case of reverse, dual-use technology transfer.
Current Boundaries and Limitations to High-Speed

Ships
With the above background on high-speed ships and
craft, we must examine their limits and how these limits
may be extended. We can discuss boundaries and limits to
the quest for speed in terms of first principle mathematical
relationships. As seen in the equations in the following section, first principles are expressed in terms of hydrodynamic, fuel, propulsion, and structural weight efficiencies.
Improvements in these efficiencies, through advancements in technology, can provide a basis for the Navy to
accelerate its quest for speed and mission effectiveness in
small-to-medium-size ships. Improvements in hullforms
can lead to ships with higher lift-to-drag (L/D) ratios at
high speed. Improvements in prime mover performance
(lower specific fuel consumption), and higher propulsion
efficiency, combined with improved hydromechanics, can
allow higher speeds and greater range at high speed to be
achieved more economically. Advances in materials and
automatic control systems can reduce ship empty weight,
improve motions and, at the same time, reduce costs.
How Do We Measure Ship Efficiencies?

Basic mission requirements are usually specified by an
operator in terms of speed, range, and payload. The designer is then faced with the challenge of satisfying these specifications and examining tradeoffs in the process. Without
even discussing the form of the ship hull, a frame of reference for the exploration of fast, high-performance ships can
be established by resorting to first principles of vehicle
performance:
Hydrodynamic efficiency is measured in terms of
L/D ratio, a non-dimensional value.
Fuel efficiency is given in terms of specific fuel consumption (sfc).
Propulsion and structural weight efficiencies are
15
expressed in terms of weight fractions based on total

ship weight.
These parameters are imbedded in two basic relationships that describe performance of marine vehicles. One is
an expression relating shaft-horsepower per ton of full-load
displacement (SHP/W) to speed, propulsive coefficient
(PC), Effective Horsepower/Shaft Horsepower (propulsive
efficiency), and lift-to-drag ratio (hydrodynamic efficiency):
SHP/W = 6.87*V/(PC*L/D)
Range is another fundamental performance measure,
and relationship depends on fuel weight fraction, speed,
power-to-weight ratio, and specific fuel consumption (sfc
engine fuel consumption efficiency):
R = 2240*(Wf /W)*V/(P/W)*sfc
Where:
P = Power in shaft horsepower
W = Ship total weight in long tons
V = Ship speed in knots
PC = Propulsive coefficient of the propulsion system
L = Total lift of ship systems in long tons
D = Total drag of ship in long tons
R = Range in nautical miles
Wf = Propulsion system fuel weight in long tons
sfc = Specific fuel consumption of propulsion system in
lb/hphr
Calculations can be made over a spectrum of ship
speeds, range, lift-to-drag ratio, and SHP/Ton, among other
parameters. Note that payload does not enter into these
relationships. Payload is the value that remains after the
designer determines the ship empty weight, and satisfies the
speed and range requirements, which in turn defines fuel
load.
The major options for achieving high speed in a seaway
follow:
Hydrodynamic Efficiency: Lifting the hull out of the
water either completely or partially, wave cancellation with multiple hulls, motion control, hydrodynamic planing, and friction drag reduction techniques to achieve higher lift-to-drag values.
Fuel Efficiency: Diesel engines, gas turbine engine
variants including Inter-Cooled Recuperative (ICR),
and fuel cells.
Propulsion Efficiency: High performance propellers,
water-jets, pump-jets, podded propulsors, and electric drive.
Structural Weight Efficiency: Light-weight/high-
16
strength aluminum, high-strength steel, composites,

and sandwich construction.
Hullform Efficiency Compared

First, how do the various hull forms designed over the
years compare in efficiency? Many approaches attempted
this comparison; two are discussed here.
As far back as 1950, Theodore von Karman and G.
Gabrielli published a famous paper What Price Speed?.14
Their answer to the question posed by the paper title
addressed power required to achieve a given speed. A price
is paid for power: the cost of the power system; the cost of
the ship to accommodate the power; the cost of delivering
the power to propel the ship; and the cost of feeding the
power system. They had collected a vast amount of data on
vehicles ranging from bicycles to fighter aircraft.
Information was displayed on several charts, one type of
which is shown in Figure 2.
Note that the impact of large tankers and supersonic
aircraft has shifted the 1950 limit line in Figure 2 to the
right. The 1970 limit line and various vehicle envelopes
form a triangular region that constitutes a gap in marine
and aircraft technology. The significance of this gap is that
it appears difficult to penetrate this region. Only through
improved efficiencies can designers find a way to develop
AMVs that allow them to enter this domain.
Figure 2 shows curves representing the minimum specific power (that is, installed horsepower divided by gross
weight, or SHP/W) as a function of maximum speed for
various types of marine vehicles, ships, and aircraft. Less
efficient vehicles of any given type lie to the left of the
curves, but none of the proven designs lie to the right of the
corresponding envelope. Also shown are lines of constant
effective L/D (or PC*L/D).
More recently, a term called Transport Factor (TF) has
been introduced by Colen Kennell in several papers.15, 16
Transport Factor is a non-dimensional relationship between
the weight, design speed, and installed power of a vehicle:
TF = K1 *W/(SHPTI/K2*V)
Where SHPTI = Total Installed Power, K1 and K2 are
factors to accommodate units.
The Transport Factor (TF) concept, shown in Figure 3,
provides insights into the interaction of some of the fundamental parameters in the assessment of high-speed ships
and craft. The various parametric relationships link ship
weight, speed, range, cargo capacity, installed power, and
fuel efficiency to assess vehicle and subsystem alternatives.
103
Concorde
707&DC-8
ab
rie
lli &
Vo
ab
nK
rie
arm
lli &
an
Vo
Lim
nK
it L
arm
ine
an
Lim
it L
ine
L1011
SES-100
Semi-Displacement
and Planing Craft
102
Amphibious
ACVS
Hydrofoils
Sidewall Craft
Destroyers
=
5
0 1
950
G
Cruisers
00
10
50
40
Concats
20
20
10
A/C
Carriers
197
0G
10
L
/D
Specific Power, P/W (SHP/L.TON)
Helicopters
00
10
1.0
Cargo Monohull
Ships
20
Submarines
100,000 Ton DWT Tankers

300,000 Ton DWT Tankers
0.1
1
10
50
10
500
10
2x10
Vehicle Max. Speed (Knots)
hand, Transport Factor uses design speed

(for example, sustained speed and service
speed) rather than maximum speed. TF
includes only the sum of installed propulsion power and lift power for dynamically
supported vehicles while excluding power
for hotel loads. Hotel load power is generally small compared to propulsion power
for high-speed vehicles, but becomes
more significant as speed decreases.
The significance of this plot is that it
provides an upper boundary, or sense of
physical limitation, of todays technology.
How far this boundary can be lifted, by
applying the various improvements in
efficiency, remains to be seen.
Kennells approach to this subject
differs from that of Gabrielli and von
Karman. They used TE for a large number
of vehicles to establish minimum power
requirements for each type of vehicle over
a range of speeds. Transport Factor data
can be similarly analyzed to produce a
similar result. A more useful insight into
design and technological issues associated
with different vehicles can be obtained by
separating TF into three components,
namely ship, cargo, and fuel. In Reference
15, Kennell elaborates on these elements
of Transport Factor.
Figure 2. Specific power, P/W, versus calm water speed for various vehicles.
Technology Advancements
The concept emphasizes overall design attributes of the ship
rather than precise performance characteristics. While
Transport Factor analysis seems applicable to all types of
vehicles at all speeds, the focus of Kennells work has been
on large ships capable of transporting large cargoes over
trans-oceanic distances at speeds of 30-100 knots. Data for
other types of vehicles have been included to provide perspective.
Transport Factor (TF) is a non-dimensional relationship between the weight, design speed, and installed power
of a vehicle. It has similarities to other parameters used to
assess different types of vehicles. The two most closely related are those pointed out above, generally known as
Transport Efficiency (TE), or SHP/ton, and the lift-to-drag
ratio (L/D). Transport Efficiency is generally used to relate
the sum of a vehicles installed propulsion and auxiliary
power to its weight and maximum speed. On the other
Subsequent to the technical effort of the Carderock

Division and the Advanced Marine Vehicle (AMV) community in its quest for speed during the 1970s and 1980s, considerable progress occurred in the categories of hullforms
and ship subsystems. We briefly describe this progress here
to provide the reader with a sense of the potential for these
elements to contribute to high-speed ship technology.
Hullforms
The Advanced Naval Vehicles Concept Evaluation
(ANVCE) study in the 1970s,17 produced many AMV concept designs. For instance, hydrofoil designs ranged in sizes
up to 2,400 tons and speeds to 70 knots. While these concepts explored the envelope of AMV feasibility, they did so
using the technology of the 1970s. A conventional hydrofoil
larger than about 1,500 tons in the near future is unlikely;
17
identified. SWG 6 concluded that the program had the potential of significantly
increasing the combat cost-effectiveness
of NATO forces entering service after the
year 2000.
Advanced Marine Vehicles are sensitive to weight, power, and fuel efficiency.
Most of these vehicles require, or their
performance is enhanced by, an automatic control system. Both Navy and commercial technology development have
advanced in these areas.
Structures/Materials
There have been even more dramatic
advancements in lightweight composite
construction. In its infancy in the 1970s,
lightweight composite construction is
Figure 3. Transport factor versus speed for a variety of AMVs and ships.
now quite mature. AMV hulls were traditionally constructed of 5456-series aluhowever, hybrid hydrofoils of much greater displacement minum to minimize weight. The yachting industry
might be feasible. Although AMVs in the 70-knot regime advanced the art of lightweight aluminum fabrication. New,
are possible, speeds of 50 to 55 knots are more reasonable higher-strength, stiffer alloys were developed. Composites
for the near future.
offer not only light weight, but also opportunities to
Figure 4 shows the relationship of the various major increase strength or stiffness. These characteristics can be of
AMVs and the relative benefits derived from each compared great benefit for all AMVs, but particularly for large hydroto conventional displacement monohull ships.
foils whose hull girder is essentially supported at two points.
Subsequent to the ANVCE study, another comprehen- Foils are an integral part of control systems for a wide varisive study performed by NATO explored a host of AMVs.18 ety of AMV applications. Relative to the technology of the
The eight nations of the NATO Naval Armaments Group early 1970s, newer, higher-strength, more easily fabricated
(NNAG), Special Working Group 6 (SWG 6), consisted of steels offer the opportunity to construct struts and foils, not
Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain, United only for hydrofoils, but for motion control systems, at much
Kingdom, and the United States. SWG 6 carried out studies less cost and lighter weight. Encapsulation systems can surto provide recommendations by which nations can decide round a structural element with a urethane airfoil shape.
upon their future involvement in NATO applications of This technique allows much lower fabrication cost, better
Advanced Naval Vehicle (ANV) technology.
corrosion resistance, resistance to damage, and easier repair
SWG 6 work on this particular project began in 1984 ability. Alternatively, better coatings protect struts and foils
with the development of Outline NATO Staff Targets from corrosion.
(ONSTs) for Hydrofoils, Surface Effect Ships (SES), and
Small-Waterplane-Area Twin-Hull (SWATH) ships. Each
ONST called for a multi-mission capability with emphasis Hydromechanics
on the Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) role. The objective
Hydromechanics design tools advanced both for comwas to assess the feasibility of increasing the operational
mercial and naval purposes. The AMV community now has
capabilities of NATO Naval Forces by augmenting existing
the opportunity to design various hull forms, and examine
and planned forces with new platforms capable of operating
a myriad of alternative shapes to determine minimum
at high speed and/or maintaining high mission capability
resistance. These design tools also apply to customized foil
through improved seakeeping under all sea conditions.
shapes for cavitation-free and minimum drag operation.
SWG 6 developed seven designs to a pre-feasibility level
Alternate control schemes, such as circulation control, can
of detail and assessed their military value, affordability, and
allow lighter weight, lower cost, and less complicated flight
technical feasibility. The development needs for each were
and steering control mechanics.
18
Advanced Naval Surface Ship Advantages

Compared to Monohull Displacement Ships
Amphibious
Higher Speeds
Hovercraft
ACV & SES
Topside Deck Area
Mono
Hull
Multi-Modal
Hydrofoils
Small
Waterplane
Area Twin
Hull (SWATH)
Improved
Seakindlines
Figure 4. Advanced marine vehicle relationships.

During the past 10 to 15 years, catamaran hulls were
employed by many builders, not only in the conventional
sense, but also for commercial hydrofoils. The catamaran
hull offers the foil designer a higher aspect ratio with a corresponding improvement in the lift-to-drag ratio. The
recent interest in commercial catamarans by the Navy suggests that catamaran, or other multihull forms, might gain
acceptance for naval missions.
Although the quest for friction drag reduction (FDR)
goes back many decades, reducing this element of ship drag
continues to be one of the hydrodynamicists major goals.
Over the years, numerous techniques such as micro-bubbles, polymers, air films, highly water repellent or Super
Water Repellent (SWR) coatings, magneto-hydrodynamics,
and probably others were the subjects of laboratory experiments. However, successful applications to full-scale ships
were few, if any. Nevertheless DARPA, through the use of
computational techniques, believes that modeling capability can allow researchers to run full-scale experiments on a
computer. This capability can provide a basis for discovering techniques that bring optimum results. This technology
can most likely succeed and result in a major contribution
to greater hydrodynamic efficiency for future higher-speed
AMVs.
Equivalent
Cost/Ton
Automatic Controls
Major advances in automatic control
technology were made. Ride control systems for hovercraft continued to be
improved over the last several decades.
Also, although the PHM hydrofoils had
an analog control system, which occupied
a compartment of its own on the ship,
now a digital control system can be built
that fits in a laptop. Furthermore, the use
of hydrofoils in ride control systems
resulted in the development of much
more efficient and effective algorithms for
control. This challenging component of
foil design for application to all AMVs
was simplified greatly. Additionally, a corresponding decrease in control system
cost and weight occurred.
Propulsion
Advances in naval gas turbine technology have fostered steady increases in
propulsion efficiency over the last 30
years. Diesel technology has also improved during this time
frame. Each is lighter weight, more power-dense, and more
fuel-efficient. Gas turbines have now advanced to a degree
where they may be advantageous over diesels in high power
applications. Gas turbines are much more common in the
Navy today than they were in the 1970s. The choice of prime
movers, however, depends on a specific set of mission
requirements and concepts for operations.
Propulsion system technology also advanced. Very large
waterjets were developed for commercial applications. They
are now much lighter, more efficient, and more reliable.
Developments in podded propulsion systems and improvements in propeller efficiency make propeller propulsion
considerably more efficient. Contrarotating propulsors are
now commercially available for high-speed vehicles and can
be scaled up to the power levels required for naval AMVs.
Relative to the PHM-class waterjets, propulsive efficiency
gains of more than 15 percent can result using modern
propulsion technology. AMVs, and particularly hydrofoils,
can also benefit from the investment made by the Navy in
podded propulsors and electric drive systems. For air cushion vehicles, air propulsion has improved with the introduction of lighter weight materials. The High Speed Sealift
Innovation Center project at NSWC Carderock addressed
the technologies associated with a number of large (4,000
tons and greater) sealift ship concepts. Its Technology
19
Development Plan (TDP) is a key reference for future work

on large high-speed ships.
Weapon Systems
Of all the improved subsystems that continue to
progress subsequent to the AMVs of the 1980s, advancements in weapons, and the combat systems directing them
are the most dramatic. Weapon lethality, as recently demonstrated during Operation Iraqi Freedom, is impressive in
terms of accuracy, range, and power. Today, long-range pinpoint-targeting accuracy is the norm. When applied to ships,
these capabilities, combined with the high-speed maneuverability of some AMVs, become a valuable mission asset.
High-speed ships also provide improved platforms for
launch and recovery of Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs)
because they can minimize the speed differential between
the platform and unmanned vehicles.
Mission Applications of Speed

In documenting the quest for speed at sea, we examined
the development of various vehicle types, the technologies
that enable them, and their limitations and relative advantages. However, it is their mission suitability, effectiveness,
and costs that, in the final analysis, determine their utility as
a deployed fleet asset. So, in this section, we briefly examine
the operational experience for U.S. fleet-deployed vehicles
and compare the operational characteristics and tradeoffs
among vehicle types. Finally, we briefly summarize the
issues associated with the costs of development, acquisition,
and operations.
Since the fall of the Berlin wall, the mission and vision
of the Navy evolved from a blue-water, war-at-sea focus
recounted in Maritime Strategy (1986), through a littoral
emphasis articulated in ...From the Sea (1992) and
Forward...from the Sea (1994), to a broadened strategy in
which naval forces are fully integrated into global joint
operations Sea Power 21 (2002).19 A new element of this
strategy is the development of the Littoral Combat Ship
(LCS). As articulated by the CNO, Admiral Vern Clark, in
Sea Power 21, the stealthy and lethal Littoral Combat Ship
will add new dimensions to our ability to counter enemy submarines, small craft and mines. Designed to be smaller and
faster than any current U.S. warship, they will have the
maneuverability and signature reduction to take the fight to
the enemy. Admiral Elmo Zumwalt, a former CNO, articulated similar goals when he recalled the focus of the PHM
program he started in 1970: Our concept was to achieve a
small, high-performance, small radar cross section, high-
20
speed, all weather capability with sufficient armament to deal

with likely threats. Our planned use was to achieve presence in
the smaller seas, i.e. Adriatic, Aegean, Gulf of Sidra, Red Sea,
Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Pacific Rim areas and the Baltic
and Black Sea.20 In both cases, the Navy needs an alternative for using high-value assets for low-end missions. For
the 29-year period ending 1999, almost 60 percent of missions conducted by ships were low-end missions.
While many of the high-speed vehicle types described
above have been in existence for many years, we have limited experience in their application in actual naval missions.
Of the high-speed concepts, only the hydrofoil, the air cushion vehicle, and the planing craft were operationally
deployed. However, two extensive studies were conducted
providing insight into the tradeoffs, value, and limitations
of each concept: the Advanced Naval Vehicle Concept
Evaluation (ANVCE) conducted in the United States from
1975 to 1979, and the NATO assessment of Advanced Naval
Vehicles performed by the NATO Naval Armament Groups
Special Working Group 6 (SWG 6) from 1984 to 1987.21, 22
These two studies provide a comprehensive and balanced
assessment framework, and along with the limited operational experience, provide insight into the naval utility of
speed. We review here the experience, trends, and tradeoffs
illustrated in the two studies as they relate to the use of
speed and vehicle tradeoffs.
Operational Experience
Of the three deployed concepts, PHM, LCAC, and PC,
the LCAC and the PC are still operationally deployed.
Experience shows that successful operational deployment
involves not only the ability to effectively perform assigned
naval missions, but also integration into the Navys logistics
and support infrastructure.
Patrol Hydrofoil Missile (PHM)

The basic concept of the PHM was to operate offensively against major surface combatants and other surface
craft to conduct surveillance, screening, and special operations. When measured against other ships, the PHM used its
top speed and employed its weapons in heavy seas that
severely limited the effectiveness of any of the larger conventional ships. After numerous delays and changes, the
squadron of six PHMs was homeported in Key West,
Florida. This decision was driven by a desire to show a presence in the Caribbean and support the U.S. Coast Guard in
the counter-drug mission. In the operational period from
1977 to the decommissioning of the squadron in 1993, the
following observations were made:23, 24
The six PHMs, representing about 3 percent of the

U.S. Navy, accounted for 26-29 percent of all surface
Navy drug seizures over the ten-year period ending
in 1993. The street value of the drugs seized by
PHMs amounted to $1.1B, or 5 times the cost to
operate the PHM Squadron over that period of time.
From March 1983 to February 1987, the PHM
Squadron amassed over 4,400 days underway with a
voyage reliability rate of 97 percent.
Three of the PHMs achieved 100-percent availability
in a 90-day forward deployment to Grenada, ending
in May 1987.
The PHM Squadron staff, six ships, and their Mobile
Logistic Support Group evolved to a personnel
requirement in 1992 of 43 officers and 362 enlisted.
This number is roughly equivalent to the crew
aboard a destroyer-size ship.
The PHMs actually cost about $3M per ship per year
to operate, about 1/3 the cost of a FFG-7, or 1/5 the
cost of a Spruance-class destroyer.
Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC)

The LCAC is an air cushion craft designed for transporting, ship-to-shore, personnel, weapons, equipment, and
cargo of the assault elements of the Marine Air-Ground
Task Force. They are capable of carrying heavy payloads
(60-75 tons), such as an M-1 tank, at speeds in excess of 40
knots to the shore and across the beach. This unique combination of high speed and all-terrain capability is a dramatic innovation in modern amphibious warfare technology. The LCAC enables launching assaults from points over
the horizon, thereby decreasing risk to ships and personnel,
and it creates a greater uncertainty in the enemys mind.
Starting in 1987, the Navy acquired 92 LCACs to date and
has conducted operations around the world, including the
Arctic. The largest deployment of LCACs took place in
January 1991 with four detachments consisting of eleven
craft in support of Operation Desert Storm. The LCAC,
which is deployable on six different classes of Navy
amphibious ships, can reach more than 70 percent of the
worlds coastlines, compared to only 17 percent with conventional landing craft.
Cyclone-Class Coastal Patrol Ship (PC-1)

The primary mission of these ships is coastal patrol and
interdiction surveillance, an important aspect of the Navys
littoral strategy. These 35-knot craft are able to transport
small SEAL teams and their specialized delivery craft, or
Coast Guard boarding teams, for counter-drug inspections

and homeland-security operations. The USS Cyclone (PC-1)
was commissioned in August 1993 and transferred to the
U.S. Coast Guard in August 2000. Of the thirteen remaining
craft, nine operate out of Little Creek, Virginia, and four out
of the Naval Amphibious Base, Coronado at San Diego, CA.
They have limited endurance for their size. These Navy vessels, slated for decommissioning in 2002, after September
11, will remain active in support of homeland security tasks.
One of the craft, PC-14, was modified with a stern ramp
permitting launch and recovery of a Naval Special Warfare
RIB (Reinforced Inflatable Boat) while underway, an important LCS capability. The PC-14 also incorporates reduced
radar, electro-optic, and infrared signatures.
Operational Characteristics and Tradeoffs

The two studies mentioned above, ANVCE and the
NATO SWG 6 assessments, represent an important framework for comparing operational and ship characteristics
tradeoffs. The ANVCE study considered nine generic concepts that generated 23-point designs using common criteria and payloads. The NATO study considered three generic concepts and generated seven-point designs also using
common criteria and payloads. The resulting performance
attributes of each concept were then compared and assessed
by a team of experts. The following concept characteristics,
taken from both studies, are provided to illustrate the operational limitations and advantages of the use of speed at sea
as they might relate to the LCS:
Overall speed comparison
Days per year of sustained operations at speed
High and low speeds operability in a seaway
Range capability versus speed
Mission payload weight trends
Overall Speed Comparison

While maximum speed in calm water is an important
design parameter, for military operations the speed in rough
water may be a more significant measure. Figure 5, from
Reference 22, shows a comparison of the predicted maximum, continuous, calm water-speeds of the point designs
considered in the NATO study. Also assessed is the annual
average maximum speed sustained in the North Atlantic.
The concepts are ordered by the sustained speed in rough
water and include a U.S. hydrofoil, Spanish SES, French SES,
U.S./German SES, Canadian hydrofoil (surface-piercing
configuration), U.K. SES, and a SWATH ship. A NATO
frigate design (NFR 90), and the FFG-7 are included for
comparison.
21
High and Low Speed Operability in a

Seaway
The LCS is anticipated to operate in a
sprint-and-drift mode for many of its
operations, so low-speed operability is
also important. The PHM-1, in a 12-day
exercise off Hawaii called RIMPAC-78,25
accumulated over 167 underway hours
with 65 percent at low speed and an average speed-of-advance of 21.14 knots. The
NATO study examined the operability at
high and low speeds of the point designs
in the northern North Atlantic in winter.
Figure 7 illustrates the results of that
assessment.
DAYS PER YEAR IN WHICH

GIVEN SPEED CAN BE SUSTAINED
MAXIMUM CONTINUOUS CALM-WATER SPEED

ANNUAL AVERAGE MAXIMUM SUSTAINED SPEED IN NORTH ATLANTIC
60
57.0
50
SPEED (KNOTS)
Days Per Year of Sustained Operations at

Speed
Speed, combined with limitations of
weapons systems and crew effectiveness, measures the operational availability of a vehicle as an
effective weapons system. The NATO studies
assessed the operational availability (days per
year) as a function of speed of each concept in
the same North Atlantic environment, as illustrated in Figure 6. These calculations include the
operational limitations of each concept type
such as foil borne broaching, pitch angles > 3
degrees, and significant vertical accelerations at
the bridge. For most of the year, the SESs and
the hydrofoils have a clear sustained advantage
over the monohulls (FFG-7 and NFR 90).
50.0
55.0
52.0
50.0
45.0
40
40.6
38.7
38.6
38.2
38.1
34.7
30
30.0
23.5
20
28+
25.8
22.5
22.1
FFG 7
SWATH
10
0
US
HYDROFOIL
SP
SES
FR
SES
US/G
SES
CA
HYDROFOIL
UK
SES
NFR 90
Figure 5. Comparison of speed capability.
300
CA HYDROFOIL
FFG 7
US HYDROFOIL
SWATH
NFR 90
200
CONDITIONS:
NORTH ATLANTIC
ANNUAL AVERAGE
FULL LOAD
DISPLACEMENT
UK SES
US/G SES
100
FR SES
0
10
20
30
40
50
Range Capability Versus Speed
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED SHIP SPEED KNOTS
Efficient multi-mode operation at
high and low speeds is an important
design consideration for the LCS. Figure 8 Figure 6. Days per year versus maximum sustained speed for NATO ANVs.
shows the predicted distance covered per
ton of fuel for each LCS point design as a function of speed. the Hydrofoil Point Designs have smaller payloads because of
The data show that the range of the SES and the hydrofoil their smaller size. Their payload weight fraction, however, is
can be extended considerably by resorting to hullborne consistent with those of comparable monohulls. The SWATH
operation. In comparison, the range of the SWATH ship and ship, however, has a payload which is some 42% below the
the FFG-7 can increase range only slightly by reducing trend line established on the basis of full-load displacement.
speed.
Mission Payload Weight Trends

Figure 9 shows the mission payload weight as a function of full-load displacement for the point designs in both
the ANVCE and NATO studies. The NATO study observed:
All the Point Designs carry considerably less mission-related
payload than their respective baseline monohulls. The SES and
22
Cost of Speed
In the final analysis, cost may be the most important
determinant in deploying high-speed ships at sea. Is the cost
worth the additional flexibility and mission effectiveness
offered by the higher speeds? A cost assessment is the focus
CB = CUSIONBORNE
FB = FOILBORNE
HB = HULLBORNE
RC = RIDE CONTROL
FS = ACTIVE FIN STABILIZERS
SHIP OPERABILITY
HELICOPTER OPERABILITY
PERCENT OPERABILITY
100
of the two comprehensive studies mentioned above. Both establish a set of common standards and payloads that permits
a more consistent cost-estimating
methodology.
80
M. TON
N. MILES
Vehicle Technology Development Costs

An aspect of cost not always discussed is the cost of developing the vehicle technology itself. This cost includes
40
the basic and exploratory research (6.1
and 6.2) in the Navys RDT&E accounting
20
method, the advanced development (6.3)
which examines and demonstrates total
system technologies, the engineering
0
development (6.4) devoted to pre-acquiUK
FR
US/G
U.S.
CA
CA
FPG 7
DD 963
SES
SES
SES
HYDROFOIL HYDROFOIL SWATH
sition research on a specific configuraCB/RC
CB
CB/RC
HB FB/RC
FB/RC
HB
HB/FS
HB/FS
27-40.5 KT
35-52 KT
30 KT
44-48 KT
45 KT
25 KT
25 KT
tion, and the actual ship construction
HB
11-17 KT
12-18 KT
20 KT
8-16 KT
15 KT
10 KT
10 KT
costs, Ship Construction, Navy (SCN).
The hydrofoil concept has the most comFigure 7. Comparison of percentage operability at high and low speed in Area 1
plete history of these costs, starting in
of N. Atlantic in winter.
1949 and ending in 1980 with the final
SCN and RDT&E appropriations. This program resulted in
MILES / TON FUEL
two research vehicles (PCH-1 and AGEH-1) and eight operUS HYO
ational vehicles (PGH-1 and 2, and six PHMs). The proporUS/G SES
tions of the total cost over the thirty-year research program
W.J.
and fleet deployment are
40
S.P. PROP
Basic Research & Exploratory Develop.(6.1+6.2) 3.0%
Advanced Development (6.3)
17.8%
Engineering Development (6.4)
15.5%
Ship Construction, Navy (SCN)
63.7%
30
Laying the technical foundation of a vehicle technology
HB
CB/FB
(6.1 to 6.3) represented about one-fifth of the total concept
US HYO
development cost resulting in a fleet deployable concept.
60
FR SES
UK SES
20
US/G SES
UK SES
FR SES
US HYO
10
SWATH
S.P. PROP
W.J.
FR SES
FFG 7
0
0
10
20
30
40
SPEED, KNOTS
Figure 8. Comparison of range per unit of fuel.
50
Acquisition Costs
Acquisition costs are related to speed as well as vehicle
size. As mentioned before, the ANVCE Study examined 23
different point designs and applied a common cost-estimating methodology to all designs. Figure 10, taken from
Reference 26, is compiled for two classes of ships, a 3,000ton and a 1,000-ton displacement class. The absolute values
are ratios of the FFG-7 costs. Peter Mantle, the Technical
Director of the ANVCE study, states: The cost of going faster
increases almost linearly until the dynamic (lift) vehicles come
into play (i.e., hydrofoils, air cushion vehicles, and surface
effect ships), at which time speed comes relatively easily and
cheap. However, it will be noticed that the cost of such vehicles
over a conventional warship (FFG-7) is greater than 2:1.27
23
larger ships with larger crews, it is perceived that

we must modify the Navys support and logistic
900
infrastructure to accommodate such new technologies. These changes constitute major disincen800
DD 963
tives. Despite these disincentives, several high700
PAYLOAD FRACTION 10%
speed vehicles have already found their way into
PAYLOAD FRACTION 6%
600
naval service. The most notable example for the
CA SWATH
500
NFR 90
U.S. Navy is the Landing Craft Air Cushion
TRIBAL
(LCAC). The LCAC is an ideal means of transport400
FFG 7
ing troops and heavy equipment from a standoff
300
position many miles from shore, through the litLUPG
US/G SES
200
MISSION PAYLOAD
toral, across beaches and marshes to solid ground,
FR SES UK SES
COMMAND & SURVEILLANCE ISWGS 4001
ARMAMENT
ISWAS 7001
100
and farther inland. It would seem, however, that
US HYDROFOIL
MISSION EXPENDABLES
ISWAS F20 & F421
CA HYDROFOIL
high-speed ships are not yet fully integrated into
0
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
the Navys current strategic and tactical thinking.
FULL-LOAD DISPLACEMENT, MT
As the nature of the threats to the United
States
and other major maritime powers changes
Figure 9. Comparison of mission payload.
in the 21st century, the long-recognized technical
advantages of high-speed and shallow-draft, airOperating and Support Costs
cushion vehicles are likely to receive even greater attention.
Operating and support costs range from 52 percent to With the emphasis in the U.S. Navys new vision on littoral
69 percent of the total life-cycle cost, which includes devel- warfare expressed in Sea Power 21, and the new role of the
opment, acquisition, and operating and support costs. The Department of Defense in dealing with asymmetric threats
NATO SWG 6 study examined operating and support posed by terrorists, rogue states, and criminals who use the
(O&S) costs for the six advanced ship point designs. high seas, it may well be that the time for higher speed ships
Lifetime O&S costs consisted of the following cost elements: has arrived. If so, the Carderock Division will, as it has in
direct personnel, operations (less fuel), fuel, direct mainte- the past, be an integral part of the persistence in developing
nance and modernization, recurring investment, and indi- the technology necessary to continue the quest for speed at
rect costs. Table 1 compares the proportions of the annual- sea.
ized O&S cost per ship for an average of the four SES
designs, and an average of the two hydrofoil designs compared to the FFG-7.
References*
Although size and payload differ significantly, the high1. Savitsky, Dr. Daniel, Chapter IV Planing Craft,
er-speed vehicle requires a smaller crew than the FFGs, most
probably due to an increase in ship automation. However, Modern Ships and Craft, Naval Engineers Journal, February
the percentage of the annual O&S cost in terms of fuel sig- 1985.
2. Jansson, B.O. and Lamb, G.R., Buoyantly Supported
nificantly increases.
Multihull Vessels, Proceedings of the Intersociety High
Performance Marine Vehicle Conference, Arlington, VA, 2427 June 1992.
Summary
MISSION PAYLOAD, MT
1000
A serious question remains: after

all this scientific and technical development why does the Navy not
have higher-speed ships? The answer
is as complicated as the technologies
required to increase speed at sea.
The quest for higher-speed ships
competes for a share of limited fiscal
resources. In addition, because Navy
culture and career incentives prefer
24
Table 1. Annualized O&S Cost

% of Annualized O&S Cost
O&S Cost Categories
Avg. SES Avg. HYD
FFG-7
Direct Personnel
19%
17%
32%
Operations (less fuel)
13%
14%
14%
Fuel
37%
21%
17%
Direct Maintenance and Modernization 25%
39%
31%
Recurring Investment
4%
7%
4%
Indirect Costs
2%
2%
2%
COST RATIO
Missile (Hydrofoil)A Brief History, Boeing

Marine Systems Report.
3.0
12. Stanton-Jones, R., The Development
3000 TONNE CLASS
of the Saunders-Roe Hovercraft SR.N1,
SES 3
Symposium on Ground Effect Phenomena at
HIGH
LB SES
Princeton, Paper 13, 21-23 October 1959.
ACV 3
HYD 2
13. Lavis, David R., and Spaulding, Kenneth
2.0
B. Jr., Surface Effect Ship (SES) Development
MONO 3
1000 TONNE CLASS
Worldwide, Chesapeake Section, Society of
SWA 4
ACV
Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, 12
HYD 7
March 1991, Meeting, Arlington, VA.
14. Gabrielli, G. and Von Karman,
1.0
PC
FFG 7
Theodore, What Price Speed? Mechanical
Engineering, Volume 72, October 1950.
KEY
CUSHION VEHICLES
15. Kennell, Colen, Design Trends in
HYDROFOILS
DISPLACEMENT VEHICLES
High-Speed Transport, Marine Technology,
Volume 35, No. 3, July 1998, pp. 127-134.
0
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
16. Kennell, Colen, et al, High-Speed
SPEED IN SEA STATE 3 (KNOTS)
Sealift Technology, Marine Technology, Volume
35, No. 3, July 1998, pp. 135-150.
Figure 10. The cost of speed.
17. Advanced Naval Vehicles Concept
Evaluation (ANVCE) Project, Volume II,
3. SNAME T&R Bulletin No. 1-45, Alternative Technical Evaluation, December 1979.
Hullforms for U.S. High Performance Ferries, 1996.
18. Assessment of Point Designs, Volume II, Detailed
4. Wilson, M.B. and Hsu, C.C., Wave Cancellation Assessment, NATO Naval Armament Group, Special
Multihull Ship Concept, Proceedings of the Intersociety Working Group 6 (SWG 6) On Naval Vehicles, November
High Performance Marine Vehicle Conference, Arlington, 1987.
VA, 24-27 June 1992.
19. Office of the CNO, Seapower-21 Series, U.S.
5. Eames, Michael Curtis, A Review of Hydrofoil Naval Institute Proceedings, October 2002 to January 2003.
Development in Canada, First International Hydrofoil
20. Zumwalt, E. R., Admiral, Comment Made to the
Society Conference, Ingonish Beach, Nova Scotia, Canada, International Hydrofoil Society, June 1995.
27-30 July 1982.
21. (OP-96), Advanced Naval Vehicles Concept
6. Johnston, Robert J., History of the U.S. Involvement Evaluation (ANVCE), Project Summary, Volume 1,
in Developing the Hydrofoil, First International Hydrofoil December 1979.
Society Conference, Ingonish Beach, Nova Scotia, Canada,
22. NATO Naval Armaments Group Special Working
27-30 July 1982.
Group 6 on Naval Vehicles, Assessment of Point Designs,
7. Browne, R. Running with Sea Legs, Gibbs & Cox, Volume II, Detail Assessment, Report No. AC/41 (SWG 6)
Inc., Author trip report (Sept. 1958), 10-U02829M DTRC D21, November 1987.
Advanced Ship Data Bank.
23. Jackson, Les J., Recent PHM Operational
8. Ellsworth, William M., Twenty Foilborne Years Experience, High Performance Marine Vehicles Conference
The U.S. Navy Hydrofoil High Point PCH-1. David Taylor and Exhibit, Washington, D.C., 24-27 June 1992.
Naval Ship R & D Center Report, September 1986.
24. PHM History 1973 Through 1993, International
9. Stevens, Don L., Jr., The Bureau of Ships Hydrofoil Hydrofoil Society.
Craft FRESH-1, Meeting of the Chesapeake Section,
25. PHM Development Experience-RIMPAC-78,
SNAME, Washington, DC, 26 February 1964, 10-U00034M 10-U1551L, DTMB Advanced Ship Data Bank, September
DTRC Advanced Ship Data Bank.
1985.
10. Johnston, Robert J., Modern Ships and Craft,
26. (OP-96), Advanced Naval Vehicles Concept
Chapter V, Hydrofoils, Naval Engineers Journal, February Evaluation (ANVCE), Project Summary, Volume 3,
1985.
December 1979.
11. Olling, David S., and Merritt, Richard G., Design,
27. Mantle, Peter J., Introducing New Vehicles,
Development, and Production of the Patrol Combatant Modern Ships and Craft, Naval Engineers Journal, February
1985.
25
*Note: Most references are available from the website

of the International Hydrofoil Society. They are also available on AMV compact discs that are available from the IHS
for a small fee.
Dennis J. Clark worked at the

Carderock Division of the
Naval Surface Warfare Center
for nearly 40 years in a wide
variety of positions prior to
his retirement in January 2003. He has been
Director of Strategic Planning, Assistant Technical
Director, Head of the Costing and Design Systems
Office, Deputy Head of the Advanced Concepts
Office, Manager of Systems Integration in the
Advanced Hydrofoil Development Office, and lead
structural researcher for the Hydrofoil Office. He is
a charter member of International Hydrofoil Society
and throughout his career he has supported the
development of advanced vehicles through a number
of activities: developed the Advanced Ship Data
Bank (currently containing over 15,000 documents
on advanced vehicles); led the development of a total
ship early stage design tool called ASSET (Advanced
Surface Ship Evaluation Tool) for a variety of ship
types (surface combatants, hydrofoils, SWATH ships,
and tri-hull concepts); led the development of cost
estimating capability for advanced technology and
vehicles; and promoted innovation through a number of venues by serving as chairman of Carderocks
Invention Evaluation Board for the last ten years,
promoting the development of Carderocks
Innovation Center, and functioning as ONRs lead
researcher on the Concept Assessment of Platforms
and Systems task. Mr. Clark is an engineering graduate of City College of New York and has completed
graduate work toward an MBA at George
Washington University.
26
William M. Ellsworth P.E.

graduated from the University
of Iowa in 1948 with an M.S.
in Mechanical Engineering,
majoring in Fluid Mechanics.
Upon graduation, he joined the David Taylor Model
Basin Hydromechanics Laboratory as a Project
Engineer. Over the next ten years, he completed
course work for a Ph.D. in Aeronautical Engineering
and held various positions in the Hydromechanics
Laboratory, ending as the Head of the Towing
Problems Branch.
He left DTMB in 1958 and joined the newly
formed Systems Engineering Division of Pneumo
Dynamics Corp. as Head of Marine Engineering. He
held various positions over the next six years ending
up as Division General Manager and Corporate Vice
President.
In 1964, at the invitation of Dr. William E.
Cummins, Head of the Hydromechanics Laboratory,
he returned to the David Taylor R&D Center as
Head of the Hydrofoil Technical Development
Program. In 1969, he was appointed Associate
Technical Director for Systems Development, and
Head of the newly created Systems Development
Department, initially as GM-17, and later as an ES4 in the Senior Executive Service. He was responsible
for the development of advanced naval vehicles
including hydrofoil craft, air cushion craft, amphibious assault craft, Small-Waterplane Twin-Hull
(SWATH) ships, advanced submarine concepts,
mobile ocean bases, and shipboard material handling and transfer systems.
He retired from federal service in January 1983
and joined Engineering & Science Associates (ESA),
a small group of consultants, as Vice President. Over
the next ten years, he provided consulting services in
marine systems and advanced naval vehicles to a
variety of government, academic, and commercial
activities. He wrote a book on the Navys experimental hydrofoil Highpoint (PCH-1) entitled Twenty
Foilborne Years. He also assisted Dr. Rodney
Carlisle in the writing of the 100-year history of the
David Taylor Research Center, entitled Where the
Fleet Begins, and served as the co-chairman of the
Editorial Advisory Board.
When ESA disbanded in 1994, he formed

Ellsworth Engineering as a sole-proprietorship and
continued to provide consulting services to government and industry up to the present time.
He received the David Taylor Medal in 1967,
the Navy Civilian Service Award in 1972, the ASNE
Gold Medal in 1974 as Naval Engineer of the year,
the Navy Distinguished Civilian Service Award in
1980, and the Senior Executive Service Meritorious
Presidential Rank Award in 1980.
He is currently a Fellow and Life Member of
ASME, a life member of ASNE, a member of the U.S.
Naval Institute, and a licensed Professional Engineer
in the State of Maryland.
John R. Meyer holds B.Ae.E.

and M.Ae.E. degrees in
Aeronautical Engineering
from Rensselaer Polytechnic
Institute, and has done additional graduate work in the same field at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He joined the
Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division
(NSWCCD) in 1971, was associated with Advanced
Naval Vehicles in the Advanced Concepts Office, and
then served as Manager of Hydrofoil Technology in
the Hydrofoil Group of the Ship Systems Integration
and Programs Departments. He has authored many
NSWCCD reports, American Institute of Aeronautics
and Astronautics, and American Society of Naval
Engineers papers on the subject of hydrofoils and
hybrid marine vehicles. He retired from the Center
in 1997 and has been active as a consultant in this
field. Among other projects, he has been working on
a project for the NSWCCD involving the Planing
HYSWAS Integrated Mode (PHIN) Unmanned
Surface Vehicle.
He currently serves as President of the
International Hydrofoil Society. Prior to employment at NSWCCD, he held several research and
development, long range planning, and engineering
management positions with Boeing-Vertol, TransSonics Inc., Air Force Cambridge Research Center,
and the Aero-Elastic Laboratory at M.I.T.
27

The Quest For Speed at Sea

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The Quest for Speed at Sea

Dennis J. Clark, William M. Ellsworth, and John R. Meyer

operational experience, and cost effectiveness of speed follows.

For more than two hundred years, numerous efforts

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

DENNIS J. CLARK, WILLIAM M. ELLSWORTH, AND JOHN R. MEYER

How High-Speed Ships and Craft Advanced

sels. Blount began his career in the Carderock Planing Craft

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

motion, involving combined roll, pitch, and yaw. In the

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

DENNIS J. CLARK, WILLIAM M. ELLSWORTH, AND JOHN R. MEYER

105 m, a beam overall of 20 m, and a displacement of about

The Early Years

landing gear for seaplanes, he fitted a set of submerged foils

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

Some Military Mission Applications Arise

Canada Complements U.S. Hydrofoil Program

er, to regain the advantage of higher surface ship speed in a

Canada and U.S. Focus On ASW

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

DENNIS J. CLARK, WILLIAM M. ELLSWORTH, AND JOHN R. MEYER

In January 1960, a group of experts from the United

ship to active service and the FHE-400 eventually became a

The U.S. Navy Begins Exploratory Research Program

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

A small 5-ton, modified Chris-Craft perhaps did the

The U.S. Navy Gets Serious

FHE-400. In a letter dated 24 January 1958, OPNAV

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

DENNIS J. CLARK, WILLIAM M. ELLSWORTH, AND JOHN R. MEYER

craft, named FRESH-1 (Foil Research Hydrofoil), was

NATO Navies Join Hydrofoil Program

U.S. Navy Hydrofoil Effort Focused On Design Concepts

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

Hovercraft offer another way to raise the hull above the

Modern Development Of Air Cushion Vehicles Begins

U.S. Army Requires Air Cushion Vehicle (ACV)

Hovercraft Include Amphibious Craft and Non-Amphibious

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

DENNIS J. CLARK, WILLIAM M. ELLSWORTH, AND JOHN R. MEYER

totype LACV-30s. They were an adaptation of Bell Aerospace

Navy and Marine Corps Begin LCAC Program

in sea state 2, and 300 nautical miles at 35 knots without

Why Surface Effects Ships (SES)?

SES Development Begins

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

In the U.S., Allen Ford launched the XR-1 in May 1963.

The SES-200: Exploring New Geometries

In the early 1980s, in order to advance the technology

SES Design and Construction Expands

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

DENNIS J. CLARK, WILLIAM M. ELLSWORTH, AND JOHN R. MEYER

ture. They have delivered one prototype FPB to the Royal

Hybrid Hull Forms Offer New Possibilities

CARDEROCK DIVISION, NSWC TECHNICAL DIGEST

this arena proceed rapidly; new variations are on the worlds

and modestly rough water are to be encountered, some of

Current Boundaries and Limitations to High-Speed