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A hydroplane (or hydro, or thunderboat) is a very specific type of motorboat used exclusively for racing. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wiktionary (a portmanteau of wiki and dictionary) is a multilingual, Web-based project to create a free content dictionary, available in over 150 languages. ... Hydroplaning and hydroplane have several meanings: With boats, planing or hydroplaning is a method by which a hull skims over the surface of the water, rather than plowing through it. ... A 1962 Rebel. A wooden speedboat with an outboard engine. ...

One of the unique things about these boats is that they only use the water they're on for propulsion and steering (not for flotation)—when going at full speed they are primarily held aloft by a principle of fluid dynamics known as "planing", with only a tiny fraction of their hull actually touching the water. For other uses, see Propeller (disambiguation). ... Steering is the term applied to the collection of components, linkages, etc. ... Fluid dynamics is the sub-discipline of fluid mechanics dealing with fluids (liquids and gases) in motion. ... Planing has several meanings: With boats, planing or hydroplaning is a method by which a hull skims over the surface of the water, rather than plowing through it. ... A hull is the body or frame of a ship or boat. ...

Hydroplane design

The basic hull design of most hydroplanes has remained relatively unchanged since the 1950s: two sponsons in front, one on either side of the bow; behind the wide bow, is a narrower, mostly rectangular section housing the driver, engine, and steering equipment. The aft part of the vessel is supported in the water by the lower half of the propeller, which is designed to operate semi-submerged at all times. The goal is to keep as little of the boat in contact with the water as possible, as water is much denser than air, and so exerts more drag on the vehicle than air does. Essentially the boat 'flies' over the surface of the water rather than actually travelling through it. Sponsons are projections from the sides of a watercraft, for protection, stability, or the mounting of equipment such as armaments or lifeboats , etc. ... A boat, like a ship, is a buoyant vessel designed for the purpose of transporting people and possibly goods across water. ... For other uses, see Propeller (disambiguation). ... An object falling through a gas or liquid experiences a force in direction opposite to its motion. ...

One of the few significant attempts at a radically different design since the three-point propriding design was introduced was referred to as Canard. It reversed the width properties, having a very narrow bow that only touched the water in one place, and two small outrigger sponsons in the back. In a canoe or bangca, an outrigger is a thin, long, solid, hull used to stabilise an inherently unstable main hull. ...

Early hydroplanes had mostly straight lines and flat surfaces aside from the uniformly curved bow and sponsons. The curved bow was eventually replaced by what is known as a pickle fork bow, where a space is left between the front few feet of the sponsons. Also, the centered single, vertical tail (similar to the ones on most modern airplanes) was gradually replaced by a horizontal stabilizer supported by vertical tails on either side of the boat and as of 2006 the horizontal stabilizer was mostly abandoned. Later, as fine-tuning the aerodynamics became more important, the bottoms of the main hull have subtle curves to give the best lift. The tail of a Lufthansa airliner (Airbus A319) in flight, showing the horizontal and vertical stabilizer Mathematics: see Group action. ...

Unlimited hydroplane engines

The aviation industry has been the main source of engines for the boats. For the first few decades after World War II, they used surplus World War II-era internal-combustion airplane engines, typically Rolls-Royce Merlins or Griffons, or Allison V-1710s, all liquid-cooled V-12s. The loud roar of these engines earned hydroplanes the nickname thunderboats. For other uses, see Engine (disambiguation). ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... An internal combustion engine is an engine that is powered by the expansion of hot combustion products of fuel directly acting within an engine. ... Airplane and Aeroplane redirect here. ... Rolls-Royce Limited was a British car and aero-engine manufacturing company founded by Henry Royce and C.S. Rolls on 15 March 1906 and was the result of a partnership formed in 1904. ... The Merlin was a 12 cylinder, 60° V, 27 litre, liquid cooled piston aircraft engine built during World War II by Rolls-Royce and under licence in the United States by Packard. ... Rolls-Royce Griffon The Rolls-Royce Griffon was a 2,240 in³ (36. ... Allison V-1710 Cutaway of Allison V-1710 The Allison V-1710 aircraft engine was the only indigenous US-developed V-12 liquid-cooled engine to see service during WWII. A sturdy and trustworthy design, it unfortunately lacked an advanced mechanical supercharger until 1943. ... The V-12 Navy College Training Program was designed to supplement the force of commissioned officers in the United States Navy during World War II. Between July 1, 1943 and June 30, 1946, over 125,000 men were enrolled in the V-12 program in 131 colleges and universities in...

Donald Campbell attempted world speed records in the jet engined hydroplane, Bluebird in the early 1950s. The Ted Jones-designed Slo-Mo-Shun IV three-point, Allison-powered hydroplane set the water speed record (160.323 mph) in Lake Washington, off Seattle, Washington's Sand Point, on June 26, 1950, breaking the previous (ten-plus-year-old) record (141.740 mph/228.1 km/h) by almost 20 mph (32 km/h). Donald Campbell Donald Malcolm Campbell C.B.E.(March 23, 1921 â€“ January 4, 1967) was a British car and motorboat racer who broke eight world speed records in the 1950s and 60s. ... A Pratt and Whitney turbofan engine for the F-15 Eagle is tested at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, USA. The tunnel behind the engine muffles noise and allows exhaust to escape. ... Tudor Owen (Ted) Jones (died January 9, 2000) was best known as an Unlimited Hydroplane designer and builder. ... Model of Spirit of Australia in which Ken Warby set the world water speed record in 1978 on Blowering Dam, New South Wales, Australia The World Unlimited water speed record is the officially recognised fastest speed achieved by a water-borne vehicle. ... Lake Washington is the second largest natural lake in Washington State, USA, after Lake Chelan, and the largest lake in King County. ... “Seattle” redirects here. ... For the capital city of the United States, see Washington, D.C.. For other uses, see Washington (disambiguation). ... Sand Point is a peninsula that juts into Lake Washington from north Seattle, Washington, USA. It is mostly occupied by Magnuson Park. ... is the 177th day of the year (178th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Starting in 1980, they have increasingly used Vietnam War-era turboshaft engines from helicopters (in 1973–1974, one hydroplane, U-95, used turbine engines in races to test the technology). The most commonly used turbine is the Lycoming T55, L-7C, used in the CH-47 Chinook. Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000... Schematic diagram showing the operation of a simplified turboshaft engine. ... For other uses, see Helicopter (disambiguation). ... Lycoming Engines is a major aircraft engine company, known primarily for their smaller general aviation engines. ... The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is a versatile, twin-engine, tandem rotor heavy-lift helicopter. ...

Efforts have occasionally been made to use automotive engines, but they generally have not proven competitive. “Car” and “Cars” redirect here. ...

The "limited" classes of inboard hydroplane racing are organized under the name Inboard Powerboat Circuit. These classes utilize automotive power, as well as two-stroke power. There are races throughout the country from April to October. Many Unlimited drivers got their start in the "limited" classes.

Until November 20, 1977, every official water speed record had been set by an American or Briton. That day Australian Ken Warby broke the Anglo-American domination when he piloted his Spirit of Australia to 464.5 km/h (290.313 mph) to beat Lee Taylor’s record. Warby, who had built the craft in his back yard, used the publicity to find sponsorship to pay for improvements to the Spirit. On October 8, 1978 Warby travelled to Blowering Dam, Australia, and broke both the 480 km/h (300 mph) and 500 km/h barriers with an average speed of 510 km/h (318.75 mph).

As of 2005, Warby’s record still stands, and there have only been two official attempts to break it.

External links

• U.S. Patent 1,420,609  -- Hydroplane
• Nice set of pictures showing bow design evolution, from the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum Also note the wood grain visible on some of the early boats--later hydros have used fiberglass and assorted hi-tech materials
• HydroInsider.com - Unlimited Hydroplane Breaking News website
• The American Boat Racing Association's hydroplane website
• The Unlimited Light Hydroplane Racing Association's website
• The Inboard Powerboat Circuit's Official website
• Extreme Boats Magazine featuring professional and recreational boating in the US