Портсмут-Райд: Әлемдегі ең ірі жолаушылар hovercraft компаниясы

Ferry company operating routes between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight
information on hovercraft in general

Hovertravel is a ferry company operating from Southsea, Portsmouth to Ryde, Isle of Wight, UK. It is the largest passenger hovercraft company currently operating in the world since Hoverspeed stopped using its craft in favour of catamarans and subsequently ceased all ferry operations in 2005. Hovertravel is now the world's oldest hovercraft operator, and this service is believed to be unique in western Europe. Although Hovertravel has claimed that it is the world's only commercial passenger hovercraft service, there is a regular winter only operator in Estonia. The operator's principal service operates between Southsea Common on the English mainland and Ryde Transport Interchange on the Isle of Wight : the crossing time of less than 10 minutes makes it the fastest route across The Solent from land to land. This service commenced operations in 1965, Hovertravel currently operates two 12000TD hovercraft on a single route between Ryde and Southsea. Additionally, Hovertravel has frequently operated other routes throughout the United Kingdom, typically as charter services.

During the late 1950s and early 1960s, British inventor Sir Christopher Cockerell had, in cooperation with British aerospace manufacturer Saunders Roe, developed a pioneering new form of transportation, embodied in the form of the experimental SR. N1 vehicle, which became widely known as the hovercraft. British manufacturer Saunders Roe proceeded with work on various hovercraft designs, successfully developing multiple commercially viable vehicles in the mid 1960s. These included the SR. N4, a large cross Channel ferry capable of seating up to 418 passengers along with 60 cars, and the SR. N5, the first commercially active hovercraft. Hovertravel first commenced operations during July 1965, initially leasing a pair of SR. N6 hovercraft, a stretched model of the SR. N5 capable of seating up to 38 passengers, from the British Hovercraft Corporation (BHC). In addition to its scheduled services, Hovertravel was also quick to enter the charter market. The BHC achieved several advances throughout the 1970s, improving its skirt technology to increase durability and require less power, while propulsion changes helped to drive down operating costs and thereby improve the hovercraft's commercial viability. Hovertravel elected to procure the newly developed British Hovercraft Corporation AP1 88, a medium size diesel powered hovercraft. Hovercraft would later acquire this vehicle, on which the passenger experience was enhanced over earlier vehicles in multiple ways; such enhancements included the incorporation of noise minimisation measures, increased external visibility, and accessibility accommodations.

For several decades, Hovertravel had operated a hovercraft ferry route between the mainland of the United Kingdom (UK) from Southsea across the Solent to Ryde on the Isle of Wight. During low tide, the hovercraft travels over sand flat at a distance of a mile to reach Ryde's hover port. By 2008, this service was the last regular route served by hovercraft anywhere in the UK. That same year, Southsea Terminal was refurbished to extend its lifetime and improve its facilities; alterations included a new wall separating the hoverport and the esplanade, as well as new lighting, toilet blocks, and a clean up of the site. During October 2017, both of the Griffon Hoverwork 12000TD hovercraft were temporarily taken out of service due to several technical and reliability issues, including instances of engine failure. A pair of AP1 88s were taken out of reserve to operate the service in their place. The 12000TD returned to regular service three weeks later. Hovertravel has occasionally been chartered to operate temporary hovercraft services across the Firth of Tay between Carnoustie and St Andrews, typically in connection with major golf tournaments, demand being amplified by insufficient hotel accommodation available at Carnoustie. Additionally, between 16 July and 28 July 2007, the Solent Express was chartered to operate an experimental service across the Firth of Forth (marketed as "Forthfast") between Portobello, Edinburgh, and Kirkcaldy in conjunction with Scottish transport firm Stagecoach Group.

On 4 March 1972, Hovertravel's SR N6 012 capsized off Southsea, with a loss of five lives, including a single missing person who was presumed drowned. The craft had been en route from Ryde to Southsea with 26 people on board, including the crew; it had been about a quarter of a mile (400 metres) offshore when it was hit by an unusually large wave, causing the vehicle to capsize. All visible survivors were rescued from the sea, while the hovercraft itself was towed ashore at Southsea. The captain of the SR. N6 was praised for his prompt efforts to rescue the people on board. This incident was the world's first fatal accident involving a commercially operated hovercraft, and the first fatal accident involving a hovercraft in the United Kingdom.