Custom-built Hovercraft Garage

So where do you park a hovercraft? One of our customers in Sweden has the perfect answer –
a custom-built hovergarage …

His hovergarage is complete with ramps and front and back doors for easy fly-through. You could save some money on the double doors, though, since the Neoteric craft’s reverse thrust lets it fly backward out of the garage.

But our customers don’t just build hovergarages – many of them build their actual hovercraft from a Neoteric Partially-Assembled Hovercraft Kit. Not only does a DIY hovercraft kit save you money, it gives you a great project to enjoy with friends & family.

And don’t think this is just a hobbyist activity; we have rescue and commercial customers who built their own hovercraft from kits. Here are just a couple of examples …

Walt Sitz of Oregon built his rescue HoverTrek™ from a kit so he can use it to help others. He and his aircraft business, Eagle Wings, Inc., belong to Crisis Response International, a non-profit organization that provides rescue and relief support to humanitarian missions worldwide …

The Winous Point Shooting Club in Ohio built their commercial hovercraft from a Neoteric kit. Winous Point is the oldest duck hunting club in America, and they use it to transport hunters over water, mud, sand and thin ice to suitable hunting spots ...

You can learn more about what’s involved in building a hovercraft from a kit, and see step-by-step photo galleries in the Neoteric Hovercraft HoverGarage.

So, get out your tools!  It’s a do-it-yourselfer’s dream come true … you can build your own hovercraft and build your own hovergarage to house it!

Fire department's Neoteric hovercraft has saved more than 255 people

The North Muskegon Fire Department in Michigan, which has utilized Neoteric rescue hovercraft for three decades, hosted an inaugural statewide Ice Rescue Conference and Education Day Saturday, attended by numerous fire and rescue departments and the U.S. Coast Guard.

North Muskegon’s newer Neoteric HoverTrek™ was used for ice rescue demonstrations at the event, and their original craft from 1985 was on display. A historical photo display of hovercraft ice rescues over the years was also part of the event.

“The North Muskegon Fire Department was a pioneer in using hovercraft for ice rescue operations,” stated training officer Jeff Hedges. Fire Chief Steve Lague added, “Our hovercraft have saved more lives than all our fire engines combined. Since 1985, more than 255 people have been rescued from Muskegon area lakes using the hovercraft. More than half of them would have drowned not having the hovercraft as a safe rescue tool.” In 2005, North Muskegon’s original Neoteric hovercraft held the world record for ice rescues.

The numerous media covering the Conference emphasized the importance of speed in ice rescues. As one reporter stated, “In just a few short minutes after falling through the ice, a victim can start to lose mobility or even consciousness. In a battle between life and death, time is of the essence.”

The U.S. Coast Guard usually responds to ice rescues with a team of four who go out on the ice on foot – while crews from the North Muskegon Fire Department’s hovercraft can safely speed upwards of 60 miles per hour across frozen or partially frozen lakes.

But you have to know what you’re doing – and that’s why professional flight training is especially important for first responders. As hovercraft pilot David Ogren says in this news video about the Conference, “Because you’re floating on a cushion of air and even though you do have a lot of control, you could very easily lose that control and have issues” …

As North Muskegon Fire Chief Steve Lague says, “Ice rescues are inherently dangerous. They’re a high risk, low probability situation where we can get into trouble very quickly.”

The Neoteric Rescue HoverTrek™, with its patented reverse thrust system, is recognized worldwide as the industry standard for rescue hovercraft because it greatly reduces that risk by keeping first responders and victims above the danger - not in it. 

Read comments from first responders using Neoteric rescue hovercraft …

DRONE VIDEO: Hovercraft Ice Rescue

You’ve seen the news video of last weekend’s ice rescue practice session with the Perry Clear Creek, White River and Hazleton Fire Department and their Neoteric rescue hovercraft.

Now check out this eye-in-the-sky view: excellent drone footage of the event on Calmuck Lake in Monroe City, Indiana, filmed by Rodney Helderman. It illustrates how well the Neoteric Rescue HoverTrek™ performs on thin and broken ice – quickly and safely accessing victims where no other vehicle can go …

First Responders: Learn more about scenarios for rescue hovercraft …

Neoteric Hovercraft rides & tours in south Florida

All Florida Watersports, Inc. on Marco Island, Florida, specializes in WaveRunner and parasailing experiences. But they were looking for something to spice up their business – and a Neoteric Hovercraft filled the bill.

Owner Ryan Peacock says, “We were looking for something a bit different. We started looking on the web, and there you guys were – something to do other than WaveRunners and typical boat rentals.”

All Florida Watersports’ Neoteric Hovertrek™ on Marco Island

After ordering a 6-passenger Neoteric commercial hovercraft, Ryan and his coworkers learned to fly and maintain their craft at Hovercraft Training Centers. As he said, “The first step is to know what a hovercraft does and how it operates.”

Ryan Peacock (2nd from left), and his crew complete HTC training with instructor Steve Stafford (3rd from left).

After their training, the team was were impressed with the Hovertrek’s ease of operation, it’s maneuverability, and the smoothness of its transitions: “It’s just incredible how there’s no transition; from land to water you don’t feel a thing – it’s amazing!”

The Neoteric Hovertrek™ flies safely and easily over most any surface.

Ryan says their new hovercraft will add a whole new dimension to their business. “We’re going to do commercial rides and tours. Now we’ll be able to land on beaches and islands. It’s just a completely different niche that’s never been done here.”

It isn’t easy for an amphibious vehicle to impress a group of guys who have been in the waterbound tourist trade for 25 years, who say they “eat, drink and sleep watersports” … but the Neoteric Hovertrek™ certainly did. Just imagine how their customers are going to react!

See how you react: Take a Neoteric hovercraft Test Flight at Hovercraft Training Centers.

And read more comments from our commercial hovercraft customers.

Hovercraft at play

Whether you spend your leisure time on land, water, ice, snow or sand, a hovercraft is the only vehicle that will fly you across any terrain in any season.

Neoteric customer Dave Reyburn cruises Florida's Suwannee River ...

Here, a Neoteric Hovertrek glides over tall grass on a tidal estuary ...

Neoteric customer Aki Kaisla flies across thin ice and water in his Hovertrek to explore the frozen Sea of Finland ...

 

Check out a photo gallery of personal hovercraft owners worldwide using their craft for recreational activities ranging from shooting the rapids to ice fishing, fly fishing, beach cruising and more.

Have a question about leisure hovercraft? Just leave a comment!

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Winous Point Marsh Conservancy Pilot Training

Opie Rohrer (left) and Jeff Miller (right) of Winous Point Marsh Conservancy,

receive their Class III Hovercraft Pilot Certificates from instructor Chris Fitzgerald.

The Winous Point Marsh Conservancy preserves a 5,500-acre marsh and maintains a wildlife habitat on the shores of Lake Erie’s Sandusky Bay in Point Clinton, Ohio USA. The Winous Point Shooting Club, a part of the Conservancy, is the oldest duck hunting club in North America, founded in 1856.

At times, weather can make the marsh difficult to reach. Strong winds can blow the water out of the access bay, which then becomes mud and soft sand and, in winter, thin ice can be a problem. The punt boats and Louisiana pero boats normally used by the club cannot operate in these conditions.

A club member who has experience in aviation recommended that the club purchase a hovercraft because it could easily travel over mud, sand and thin ice. The new Winous Point Neoteric HoverTrek™ will be used to ferry hunters to suitable hunting spots.

Because Opie and Jeff have experience building the club’s punt boats, they purchased a Neoteric partially assembled hovercraft kit and are assembling their Deluxe Model 3706 four-passenger hovercraft themselves.

From Indiana to India

Neoteric is pleased to have been chosen to provide 8 hovercraft and pilots to perform the closing ceremony in the Indian Premier League (IPL3) 2010 Cricket Championship in Mumbai, India. Neoteric was selected because of the HoverTrek's stylish design and versatility - it's the only craft on the market able to pirouette, go sideways, travel in reverse and hover in place to perform a complicated, choreographed routine. Hovercraft are the only vehicle that will not damage a fragile cricket field.

Here, 6 of the 8 hovercraft await loading into a 40-foot shipping container on March 1 to begin their 6 to 8-week journey to India by train, rail and ship ...

The hovercraft pilots will be Neoteric President Chris Fitzgerald and Neoteric customers Magnus Ivanoff, owner of Ivanoff Hovercraft AB, Sweden; Steve Stafford, a police officer from Bedford, Indiana; Phil Whitney, a Midas Muffler franchisee from Bowling Green, Kentucky; Dave Reyburn, a MasterCAM computer programmer from Goshen, Indiana; and Tom Dienhart, a pet store owner from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Additional pilots and craft are expected to be provided by Neoteric’s Indian dealer in Jammu, Kashmir.

Here, the first of the six 600-pound hovercraft is loaded into the shipping container by Chris Fitzgerald (rear left) and Neoteric employees ...

The IPL Final will take place on April 25 at the Dr. DY Patil Sports Stadium, a state-of-the-art cricket facility in Nerul, Navi Mumbai, India. Considered an engineering marvel, the stadium is four times the area of an American football field and seats 55,000 spectators. The IPL is fourth on the Forbes list of the world’s hottest sporting properties, and the televised Final will be viewed by more than a billion people worldwide.

This could be the first time in history that hovercraft have been involved in a cricket match - stay tuned for updates!

See more photos ...