Russian tech WIG craft takes off in Ilocos Sur

VIGAN CITY, Ilocos Sur — Former governor and business tycoon Luis “Chavit” Singson revealed yesterday that a Russian technology sea and air craft, called WIG craft, will start production next month in Ilocos Sur.

Chavit, a close friend and political ally of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., said that his LCS Group of Companies is producing cutting-edge WIG craft to be established in Caoayan and Cabugao towns.

A WIG craft is “a vessel that can take off and landing from the sea, land, and snow, and capable of operating completely above the surface of the water on a dynamic air cushion created by aerodynamic lift, due to the ground effect between the vessel and the water's surface.”

A wing-in-ground (WIG) craft is a marine craft equipped with wings which enables it to remain airborne just above the water surface. It utilizes ground proximity effects to improve aerodynamic loading and efficiency. It fills the technological gap between conventional aircraft and ships.

A WIG craft operates at much higher speeds than ships and more efficiently than aircraft. Another distinct advantage of a WIG craft is its ability to take off anywhere from the sea surface without the need for a runway.

Due to its superb and unique features, WIG crafts serve as a promising choice of fast, safe, and efficient platform for the next generation of marine transportation systems. The objective of this work is to investigate the aerodynamic characteristics, as well as the longitudinal flight dynamics and stability of WIG crafts to achieve improved WIG-craft designs.

In an exclusive interview by this writer, Singson, widely known as “Apo Chavit,” said that his LCS Group in Seoul has been manufacturing what he called next generation WIG craft, after he was given the exclusive right and franchise by Russia to manufacture it in South Korea and in the Philippines.

“The WIG craft is a Russian technology and it is in fact a state-of-the art technology since it has a shorter landing and take off unlike other planes,” Chavit told this writer.

He said his company will soon manufacture in Caoayan and Cabugao towns in Ilocos Sur and another one shop in Cebu.

He said they have designed 14-, 30-, and 100-seaters WIG craft which he said is four times lighter than steel as this is made of fiber, adding a lot of clients have already ordered his WIG craft.

Asked if this is for commercial purposes, Chavit said this is for military and private use only, so far.

“WIG craft is already being manufactured in Germany but ours is much more high-tech than Germany products,” he pointed out.

Unlike seaplanes, WIG crafts take-off from the sea surface and cruise at a constant gap just a few meters from the sea surface and, of course, the significant landing on the sea surface, a source said.