Thinking of buying a hovercraft?

Flying Fish Hovercraft have been developed over the course of more than a decade. The lightweight yet strong construction, beautiful engineering and intelligent design produces a craft which outperforms any other hovercraft in its class, whilst costing a fraction of imported (and in some cases, UK) manufactured hovercraft.

Flying Fish is an appointed OEM supplier of the Briggs & Stratton motors that power the craft, meaning that we have the support, backup and warranty on engines covered – anywhere in the world. The hulls are very light, yet strong and buoyant. The steering and performance are both pin sharp and responsive to every input. The aim of producing the finest ‘sports-cruiser’ light hovercraft available anywhere in the world is something that Flying Fish are proud to have achieved.

The craft have been developed based on first hand challenges and adventures that few manufacturers can equal. ‘Snappers’ have won a UK Inland National Championship in 2003, Marlin I took wins in the UK National Coastal Championship in 2005 and 2006, racing across beaches and through tidal gullies. The craft have completed eight ‘Rhone Raid’ adventures, travelling 600kms of Rhone & Saone rivers in France and literally thousands of miles at cruises in the UK and around the world.

In 2008, the team at Flying Fish thought they’d achieved the ‘big one’ when two Marlin I hovercraft crossed the English Channel from Dover to Calais, over the treacherous Goodwin Sands and then across the busiest shipping lane in the world. Then they turned around and came home, taking under and hour each way. Almost by the time celebrations had finished, one customer in Ireland had eclipsed the feat by casually cruising across the Irish Sea from Ireland to Scotland - and back again! The team went on in 2011 to repeat the channel crossing once again...just to prove it wasn't a fluke!

On top of all that experience, Flying Fish’s subsidiary Hovercraft Adventures operate days out and events for hundreds of people each month to come along and try hovercrafting. This experience means that the company has learned for themselves exactly how to achieve the highest possible reliability from the hovercraft – it's fair to say that no other manufacturer has as much experience of their own craft!

It’s this spread of knowledge from building race winning craft and long-legged cruisers that make Flying Fish the most accomplished light hovercraft available anywhere in the world.

However, we're always improving the product. Our team of talented engineers and designers have developed our personal hovercraft for ten years. For instance, since the beginning of 2012, the Marlin has undergone the following improvements.

New hull moulds with improvements to internal airflow characteristics gives incredible lift.
Improved location of buoyancy foam gives better flotation and 3” more freeboard.
Higher quality finish to all mouldings – better overall finish.
New alloy dash panel.
Rejigged duct for almost perfect roundness, improves tip clearance and performance.
Brand new fan frame which is stronger, stiffer, quicker to produce and quieter.
Resited flow straighteners/stators for less noise, more thrust.
Improved rudder mounting, looks better/is stronger.
Cabling routing improved with gaiter to keep under seat storage dryer.
Improved marinisation of engine electrics – all stainless steel fittings for marine environment. Click HERE to see just how waterproof the Marlin is!
Engines modified to provide better performance. Savage now 37bhp with huge torque curve - Rampage 50bhp!
Revised skirt design to give bigger footprint, improved high speed stability and better plough characteristics.

We don't make spurious claims for our engines! Take a look 'HERE:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfNoAFd8S20&context=C4c48f03ADvjVQa1PpcFMpjVClnZXzbsgbuHxKPnkDY7CBOn5qvY=' to see one of our Briggs & Stratton Vanguard engines being tested on a dynamometer. No wild claims, just hard facts supported by power graphs. No other personal hovercraft manufacturer we know of will provide that! And now, with such excellent performance already established, current work is centering in two key areas.

New exhaust in design to reduce noise and allow better internal airflow in plenum chamber.
Revised splitter plate design to give better lift and thrust whilst reducing noise.
Flying Fish craft genuinely work as well as you’d hope and expect them to. Manufactured to a very high specification and boasting marine quality fittings, such as stainless steel exhausts, engine and fan frames, the ‘hoverised’ four stroke engines are designed to operate in a salty marine environment. The craft are comfortable and easy to drive, with no nasty habits and excellent resistance to ‘plough in’ (See FAQs) meaning long cruises can be undertaken without arriving stiff and sore!

So, whether it’s exploring mud flats and estuaries, rivers, glaciers or deserts, or simply blasting around your own private lake (see the Jamiroquai video on the home page!) there’s a good chance a Flying Fish craft has experienced it before! Your hovercraft adventure starts here!

Buying a Hovercraft

Thinking of buying a hovercraft?