Hovercraft Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

Hovercraft Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

The Hovercraft Market size is expected to grow from USD 158.68 million in 2023 to USD 175.20 million by 2028, at a CAGR of 2% during the forecast period (2023-2028).

The heavy load-carrying capacity of the large hovercraft enables the armed forces to transport troops, military supplies, and equipment to carry out humanitarian assistance, rescue, and disaster relief missions. The increasing applications of hovercraft in the commercial sector and growing adoption for recreational purposes are accelerating the growth of the market during the forecast period.

The advantage of hovercraft for traveling over shallow waters and terrains, irrespective of water current direction, and the minimum cost requirement for infrastructure are major factors generating the demand for hovercraft during the forecast period.

The companies are also focusing on developing technologically advanced and lightweight hovercrafts capable of attaining high speeds in harsh industrial environments with better manoeuvrability characteristics to attract new customers for exploring waterways. The development of new models for diversified consumer base is expected to propel the growth of market in the coming years.

Hovercraft Market Trends

The Military Segment Accounted for the Largest Share by Revenue in 2020

The military segment is expected to continue its dominance over the market during the forecast period, as the navies and other marine authorities are utilizing large hovercrafts to transport troops, military supplies, or even tanks. Due to their ease of operation over land and sea mines, sand, mud, ice, snow, rocks, weeds, logs, debris, and rapids, they can be used for offensive operations, humanitarian aid, logistics, and security roles. US naval forces have shown interest in newer generation hovercraft in the past few years and have placed an order with Textron. Textron was awarded a contract worth USD 386 million to build an additional 15 hovercrafts for the US Navy. The contract was approved as part of the Ship-to-Shore Connector (SSC) Program, also known as the LCAC 100 class, which is replacing the existing fleet of Landing Craft Air Cushions (LCAC) vehicles that nearing the end of their 30-year service life. Work is being performed in New Orleans, Louisiana, and is expected to be completed by January 2025. Similarly, in early 2019, Griffon Hoverwork delivered 2000TD hovercraft to the Colombian Navy. The model has been refined in design and engineering to meet the demands of the natural features and low infrastructure of winding rivers and creeks to help the Colombian Navy combat its war on drugs. Armed forces in countries like China, Russia, India, and Iran, among others are expected to induct newer-generation military hovercraft over the next decade, which is anticpated to drive the growth of the segment during the forecast period.

Europe is Expected to Experience the Highest Growth During the Forecast Period

Europe region is expected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period due to the increased adoption of hovercraft from both commercial and military end-users due to opportunities arising from an improved standard of living and the effects of climate change. The law enforcement authorities and border forces in the region are utilizing the transportation of goods, surveillance and rescue, and support counter-narcotic activities. The Russian Ministry lists high-priority transport goals in the Arctic region that include the all-season delivery of supplies to ice-resistant platforms on the continental shelf, primarily gas-drilling rigs in the Gulf of Ob, freight deliveries via various size rivers and in coastal sea regions, and unloading freight from supply ships anchored at roadsteads. In this regard, the Russian navy awarded a contract to Central Design Bureau Neptune for two Project 23321 Manul lightweight combat hovercraft in December 2017. The hovercraft is envisioned to be principally used by the Russian military to transport personnel across shallow water at high speed. In addition to this, the demand for hovercraft in the region is expected to witness growth due to several enthusiast events like Hovercraft European Formula 1 event. Such events are anticipated to accelerate the growth of the market in the region.

Hovercraft Industry Overview

The hovercraft market is highly fragmented, with the presence of many regional players in the market that caters to hovercraft requirements for leisure, commercial, and military applications. Companies, such as Textron Inc., Griffon Hoverwork Ltd, Universal Hovercraft of America, Inc., Neoteric Hovercraft, Inc., and Ivanoff Hovercraft AB, are prominent players in the hovercraft market. Due to higher fragmentation in the market, the companies are developing new strategies such as mergers and acquisitions and expansion of existing portfolios to proliferate new orders from commercial and military customers. The companies are robustly investing in the development of new hovercraft models and variants of existing models with enhanced performance capabilities. On this note, the British Hovercraft Company Ltd announced that the company invested more than 30% of its turnover over three years into R&D of new design hovercraft that may provide superior performance in a wide range of commercial applications. Similar adoption of expansion strategies by various companies is anticipated to help the companies to tap into new customer bases and expand their geographical presence in coming years.

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