The Wingship's Potential for Strategic Lift.
Abstract
A Wing-In-Ground-effect (or WIG) aircraft is a vehicle designed to fly just above the surface of the earth in an aerodynamic regime called "ground effect." Flying in ground effect allows greater fuel efficiency than realized by conventional aircraft. One large WIG design that combines the cargo capacity of a small ship with the speed of a large aircraft is currently being considered as a strategic lift vehicle. This "half-airplane/half-ship" is aptly called a "wingship." The main proponent of the wingship design is a company called Aerocon in Arlington, Virginia. In 1993, Aerocon successfully lobbied Congress to provide funding for a study to be completed by the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) on the potential of wingships as strategic mobility vehicles. This report looks at the preliminary findings of ARPA and the claims of Aerocon regarding the wingship's strategic mobility potential. These two different viewpoints provide most of the "pros" and "cons" of wingship development for the strategic mobility mission. Additionally, the report examines some other military, economic, diplomatic, and political factors that should be considered in a decision to pursue this new technology.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 1995
- Accession Number
- ADA294169
Entities
People
- Peter C. Losi
Organizations
- Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy