by Six decades on from the advent of the jet age, aviation is looking back to the future as niche business demands and infrastructure gaps pave the way for a revival of aircraft production.
Seaplanes were prominent throughout the world in the first half of the 20th century, and are an integral part of Australian aviation history. The country’s first international airport, Rose Bay in Sydney, opened in 1938 and was the base for flights to Europe.
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The first passenger services to the UK Qantas, operated in conjunction with Imperial Airways, departed Rose Bay airport and arrived in Southampton 10 days and 35 refueling stops later – much faster than the more than 40 days it took the journey by ship at the time. The frequent “hopping” along the route has given it the nickname “kangaroo route” which has always been used for Australia-London flights.
Qantas operated flying boats on the route, a distinct category of larger aircraft where the fuselage acts like a ship’s hull while in the water, compared to smaller aircraft which often have floats located under the fuselage, keep above the water while landing.
Only the Qantas Empire Aircraft – as the joint venture was known – was first class, carrying up to 14 passengers who could enjoy a promenade cabin, steam room, wine cellar and socializing areas.
The second world war was a key turning point in commercial aviation, largely bringing the glamorous age of flying boat travel to a halt. The war led to a massive proliferation of runways built around the world for military aircraft.
By the end of the war most destinations had runways and propeller and jet engine technology had advanced. Seaplanes – which were slower, less direct, more susceptible to bad weather and less economical – struggled to remain competitive.
“People thought seaplanes weren’t needed anymore and that was probably true at the time,” says Dan Webster, chief executive officer of Amphibian Aerospace Industries (AAI).
Webster’s Darwin-based company is among a handful of manufacturers looking to revive seaplane production for a new era of aviation.
There are many start-ups – including plans for zero-emission “sea gulls” and electric variations of delivery planes in Norway – as well as existing producers working on different types of seaplanes. AAI is reviving the Albatross G111T – a flying boat first flown by the US air force and navy in the late 1940s.
As an amphibious aircraft it can take off on water and land on a runway, and vice versa.
More than 400 were built by the American manufacturer Grumman, but the planes have been out of production for 60 years.
Originally a radial engine aircraft, the new generation will have turboprop engines. Some Albatros owners have retrofitted turboprop engines, but only on an individual basis. No company can do it en masse, as the certificate to produce the aircraft now belongs to the AAI.
The 19m long fuselage will seat up to 28 passengers plus crew, or can be fitted out to carry cargo or as a medical aircraft, when the first of the new-age albatross rolls off the production line in about four years’ time .
The wave of new technology
Aviation is facing a “dynamic and turbulent phase”, according to Professor Tim Ryley, head of aviation at Griffith University.
Commercial airlines are looking to sustainable aviation fuel, as well as more efficient aircraft from manufacturers, as ways to meet looming emissions reduction targets as well as save on their fuel bills.
Electric aviation is in its infancy. The technology initially appears to be more viable for smaller aircraft used for short-haul regional services.
In Australia, Rex Airlines is grappling with the question of how to replace the aging fleet of Saab 340 aircraft it relies on for regional flights, as they are no longer in production. It has partnered with electric airplane startup Dovetail, and hopes to run test flights soon.
Elsewhere, small electric aircraft are being investigated for mail runs in New Zealand.
In another nod to the history of aviation, almost nine decades after the Hindenburg disaster, there is a worldwide race to build and fly aircraft, both for passengers and for transporting cargo to hard-to-reach locations.
Interest in airplanes declined throughout the 20th century, but never completely disappeared, especially in harbor cities.
Ryley notes that Vancouver Harbor Air operates scheduled services around the city and Victoria Harbor using smaller aircraft.
“They do short, high-demand trips and it’s commercially viable,” Ryley says, adding that customers can expect to pay more for tourist-oriented airline services because the aircraft are not being used. always to maximize results, as they are i. scheduled services.
In Sydney, seaplanes still operate out of Rose Bay, where they mostly fly tourist routes to places like Palm Beach.
This convenience factor is a big part of the resurgence in interest and race to bring new seaplanes to market, says Webster.
Resort operators on remote islands, who struggle to convince “weekend travelers” to spend nearly a day traveling by plane and boat to reach them, are one such niche market crying out for amphibious aircraft, says Webster.
“For those who run island resorts, our aircraft can fly from an international airport and land on the water right at their resort of choice, so it opens up the short-stay market that would otherwise not be possible.
“As the world has grown, and islands have been developed across the Pacific and north of Darwin, the equation for seaplanes has changed again.”
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Webster says the planes could also be used to provide medical care to hard-to-reach areas north of Darwin, including some Indigenous communities. “It opens up a whole range of possibilities for casualty evacuation treatment centers – we can do a water landing and a boat ramp for parking,” he says.
“Imagine running for milk along the Cigites, or to islands in Indonesia where most are served by very slow ferries or helicopters. This is the game-changer.
“People in New York are also looking at this kind of thing, wanting to fly these from the Hudson [River] because it’s so hard to get to an airport.”
Webster says flying boats are cost-effective compared to helicopters, which are more expensive and complicated to operate.
“The niche we fill is where there is water at one end. If one end doesn’t have water, we’re probably not the right aircraft,” he says.
Ryley also believes that seaplanes could find a renewed business case amid the current turmoil in aviation innovation.
“The economics and the pricing really depends on what the alternatives are,” he says. “Especially with the pressure on space for modern airports, and the need for good road links at each,” says Ryley.
AAI already has some firm orders for aircraft, says Webster. One order is reported to be worth US$20m, although Webster cannot confirm pricing.
“There’s a lot of interest and it’s growing all the time. When we started a lot of people looked at us like we might have two, but now they’re more interested,” says Webster.
