From W. & O. Wright
We have been most interested in your items on the Russian “ekranoplan” and
the Japanese trains that operate on the same principle (
25 March, p 14; and
11 March, p 11).
We have been working on a further development of this idea for
some time.
Briefly, we believe that, by extending the “wings” and adding further motive
power, such a device could be persuaded to leave the ground altogether. This
would enable it to move directly through the atmosphere to its destination,
where it could alight on a suitably prepared area where its passengers could
embark and disembark.
We propose to call this an “air-o-plane”, or possibly “aer-o-plane”, and if
all goes well we shall have a prototype ready for testing by about 2003.
Kitty Hawk, North Carolina
