SMARTER STRATEGIES

New Hovercraft May Revolutionize Field Operations

Michael Steinhart | Date: 06-10-10 | Comments

Portable observation platforms that can hover in place for extended periods of time provide effective "eye in the sky" surveillance for military applications.

Military installations and encampments are usually equipped with guard towers, so lookouts can use the height advantage to keep watch over longer distances and spot potential threats in time to take defensive action.

But what about camps and bases in areas where the topography doesn�t allow for easy scouting? For those, the U.S. military and others rely on massive helium balloons that carry highly sensitive cameras. The U.S. Army has nine such aerostat balloons deployed in hot zones around the world and ordered another eight from Lockheed-Martin late last year. These can hover at altitudes of up to 1,500 meters (nearly a mile) and provide a 360-degree picture of the surrounding area.

At 74,000 cubic feet and $16 million per unit, though, these threat-detection systems aren�t necessarily optimal for smaller-scale and mobile operations. That�s where a new invention from Israel Aerospace Industries comes into play.

The Electric Tethered Observation Platform (ETOP) can be deployed from a vehicle or ground station, and it can hover at a maximum of 100 meters, or 328 feet, with the help of four propellers. It can carry up to 20 kg (44 pounds) of payload�thus enabling military operators to send up a camera or sensor array quickly.

The Israel Aerospace Industries Electric Tethered Observation Platform (ETOP) should be ready for deployment in 2011.

From the Popular Science report on the announcement:

The ETOP [is] an ideal platform to carry observation equipment and sensors to higher vantage points so troops on the ground can see what's all around them. The platform's four propellers can hover at predetermined altitudes for durations limited only by the power source on the ground, which pipes power to the machine via its tether.

The ETOP is unmanned, and it can stay aloft as long as the base can provide electrical power. By leaving the power source on the ground, the ETOP is lighter and more maneuverable than older hovercraft designs.

As of late May, IAI announced that it had conducted 10 successful test flights and had two ETOPs in operation. The firm expects to have the system ready for deployment as of 2011.

Here at Smarter Technology, we can�t help but think of other uses for this kind of aircraft, aside from military applications.

For instance, an ETOP could be deployed to survey earthquake or storm damage, or to help in search-and-rescue efforts, especially in situations where sending up a manned aircraft would be inadvisable for whatever reason. Newsgathering agencies could use an ETOP to report from dangerous locales as well.

And now we turn the brainstorming over to you. What kind of applications do you envision for hovercraft? Sound off in our comments section!