The Regent Viceroy Seaglider completed its first lift-off on its hydrofoil lifting surfaces, gliding as its name suggests above the (placid) waves of Kingston, Rhode Island. Of course, that lift is helped by the 65-foot wing, making this a commercially feasible WIG (Wing In Ground Effect) machine. We have reported on earlier versions of the machine three years ago and late last year. The configuration has changed from eight motors to twelve, but the overal concept has remeained the same.
This configuration has many advantages. The hydrofoils elevate the craft out of the water and lessen any hull drag on it significantly, enabling it to glide above, rather than plough through the water. Operatoing in three different modes, the craft can go from navigating crowded harbors to skimming oceans along seacoasts.
Simplicity of Operation
In full flight mode, the wing operates in ground effect, a cushion of air roughly equivalent to the craft’s 65-foot span. Flying at this altitude enables the plane to fly on less power, preserving the battereis for extra range. Passengers should enjoy the ocean-front views while they cruise at up to 180 mph to their destination.
Pilots should enjoy the reduced workload based on guiding the Seaglider right or left to avoid obstacles identified by sensors, and maintaining speed for conditions and operational modes.
Instrumentation and controls include displays with synthetic vision and moving maps, an infrared camera, forward-looking SONAR and maritime RADAR to provide awareness even in restricted visibilty, and electronc charts to provide enhanced navigational assistance. Pilots should always know where they are and how their craft is doing.
Simplified controls ease pilot workload, displays provide essential informoation while decluttering cockpit of paper charts
Marines Show Interest
The United States Marine Corps has specialized in beach landings for several centuries, and the Seaglider would make a useful addtion to their tactical resources. Based on the video and accompanying illustration, they have the potential to use the battery-powered version, a hybrid variant for extended range missions up to 1.400 miles, or a swarm of Squire USA-Vs.
Marine Corps variants include a battery-powered version capable of carrying 12 180 miles, a hybrid model able to haul 3,500 pounds, and a swarm of small Squires, useful for providing support logistics
Composites World reports the Corps sees missions including:
- Troop and supply logistics
- Medical evacuation (medevac) and search and rescue
- Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR)
- Launched effects, including deployment of uncrewed systems from the seaglider vessel.
Tom Huntley, general manager of REGENT Defense. explains, “We’re building platforms engineered for maritime defense operations in contested and logistically complex maritime environments.”
Regent craft of all sizes would be assets in littoral areas, that stretch of ocean from the beach to the end of shallow depths that sometimes obstructs large craft trying to deploy troops or equipment.
The littoral zone, often challenging for large vessels, could be well served by seagliders
With over $10 billion in orders worldwide and strong support financially and developmentally from the military, Regent seens to be on a low-level flight path to success. One thing will probably cause issues now and in the future, however. Will naval or aerial rules apply? When. where, and how?