Saab 401

The Saab 401, known by its Swedish project name MEFA (Markeffektfarkost, a ground effect vehicle) and nicknamed MEFAN, was an experimental air-cushioned vehicle built as a single prototype under contract to the Swedish Navy. The project began in the late 1950s as a collaboration between Saab, the Royal Swedish Naval Materiel Administration, Karlskronavarvet (Saab Kockums) and the Swedish National Aeronautical Research Institute (FFA), with design led by Olof Ljungström and engineering work contracted to Vickers-Armstrongs. Weighing about two tons and able to reach roughly 40 knots on open water with two people aboard, it was first tested on 4 March 1963 in Norrköping and delivered to the Berga Naval Base for trials in January 1964. A 180 hp Lycoming O-360 piston engine drove an eight-blade lift fan, and the craft hovered at up to 17 cm. Unlike a typical hovercraft it carried no large rubber skirts, being built to withstand direct contact with lakes and hard surfaces such as ice. The Navy retired the project in 1967 and donated the prototype to a maritime museum in Karlskrona.