Air boat
Encyclopedia : A : AI : AIR : Air boat
Air boats are flat-bottomed punts powered by a propeller attached to an automobile or aircraft engine. The propeller has the typical shape and size of an airplane propeller and so requires a large metal cage to protect passengers and other users. The flat bottom allows air boats to navigate easily through shallow swamps and marshes as well as in canals, rivers and lakes. The driver sits high on a platform to improve visibility and to permit spotting floating obstacles and animals in the path of the boat. Steering is accomplished by swivelling vertical fins positioned in the propeller wash, so control is a function of current, wind, water depth and propeller thrust. Crabbing into the wind or current is required. The noise from the propeller and engine is quite loud. Air boats vary in size from 18 person tour boats to trail boats carried on a road trailer and suitable for two or three passengers.
Air boats are a very popular means of transportation in the Everglades, Florida, USA, where they are used for hunting, and tourist rides.
Note: in early aviation history the term airboat was applied to seaplanes or flying boats, amphibian aircraft capable of taking off and landing on water surfaces.
See also
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