When working on projects that require water access, getting materials and manpower to the project site is often the most challenging element of the project. Traditionally access is provided by reinforced open-deck pontoon boats with outboard motors. While effective at providing access, the round trip travel time and site access limitations for traditional propeller-driven pontoon boats limit production and often impact productivity.
The project team designed, planned, and completed the ground-up construction within 6 weeks. This heavy haul airboat meets the specific needs required to be efficient and productive with projects limited to water-only accesses. The load capacity of 16,000 lbs is capable of carrying 10 to 12 personnel with an average speed of 35 mph with a 12,000 lb payload.
The airboat modifications improved safety, reduced round trip travel time, enabled better accessibility to projects located in a waterborne environment, and increased the efficiency and overall productivity in the heavy hauling of materials and personnel to and from the project work site. The heavy haul airboat can carry twice the load and has half of the round trip time of the standard pontoon boat normally used on waterborne projects.