No crane with cabling could have simulated those bumps. Of course, some of the distant shots were pure matte shots with no wheels used at all.Ĭrane mighta been used for the long shots, although they shimmer in the DVD as though they’re purely opticals, but if you watch the close ups of the speeder coming to a stop, it rocks bumps and jars - and their bodies move- as though they’re rolling to a stop on bumpy ground. Not only did it make people think that the “force field” was holding it up, but it allowed for a cheap soft-edged travelling matte to be used to wipe away the wheels, and make for sort fo a blurry sandy affair. The “shimmering” effect was remarkably economical. (- Joel Monka 9/5/00)Īctually, it was suspended from a crane, with cables.Īctually actually, it drove on wheels. It was a wonderful dream, but to have spent millions on it was typical of a management team that took Curtiss from the biggest in the industry to bankruptcy. To complete the dismal picture, hover height was only inches, and there was no flexible skirt - it had less off-road capability than an average sedan of the period. What the footage shows, however, is that the car was just barely controllable, even over smooth pavement in good weather. Power came from two Lycoming 180 hp horizontally-opposed piston aircraft engines, each driving a large vertical ducted fan (front and rear). It was a big plenum chamber with controllable shutters all along the perimeter for thrust, braking, and control. C-W may have overlooked the small in the requirements document the Air Car was 21-foot-long, 8-foot-wide, 5-foot-tall, but being mostly hollow weighed in at a fairly light 2770 lbs. What they actually tested was bigger than a Ford Excursion, but still only seated two. I have seen footage of some of the test ‘flights.’ First, the cars looked nothing like the drawing - that sweetheart was a marketing department dream, not reality. Displayed at Fort Eustis Transportation Museum, Colonial Williamsburg VA.Ĭ-W experimented in the field of hovercraft with high hopes that the new technology would save their moribund company, and these hopes caused them to issue news releases and drawings of the new product long before the engineering department was ready.
Total “flight” time in mid-July 1959 was about 25 hours, albeit only inches AGL top speed: 35. 2500 Wright Air-Car aka Bee 1959 - Experimental 2p passenger air-cushion hover-car, built in test form (lower photo), anticipated market in ag application and as swamp buggy 85hp Continental with 6’ two-blade prop (projected multi-blade props with two 180hp Lycomings) width: 8’0" length: 28’0". More here, scroll down for the photo links. There’s some footage that shows up on Discovery Channel shows on hovercraft. The Curtiss-Wright Air-Car was just an ordinary hovercraft with rigid sides and “venetian blind” vents for steering, and some car-like trimwork.
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