The Potential of Seaplanes: Reaching Out to Remote Regions
The first seaplane pilot to land on the Sabarmati River in Ahmedabad, India.
One of the more questionable quotes I hear seaplane promoters use is that 71% of the Earth’s surface is covered by water, suggesting that we need more seaplanes to fly to more places. While there’s a certain appeal to the notion that our planet’s vast expanses of water should be bustling with these versatile aircraft, the reality is a bit more complex. Though I wholeheartedly agree that the world could benefit from more seaplanes, those statistics can be misleading.
Limitations of Water Landings: It’s Not Always Smooth Sailing
First and foremost, you can’t alight (land) a seaplane just anywhere there is water. My answer to the promoter’s questionable quote is that despite the Earth’s seemingly boundless blue waters, we can operate seaplanes in only a tiny fraction of that area under optimal conditions. Let’s consider the factors that influence the viability of water landings:
- Weather Conditions: Strong winds and rough waters pose significant challenges to safe seaplane operations. Turbulent weather can create large waves and swells, making seaplane operations tricky.
- Obstacles: Natural obstructions like reefs, sandbars, and even wildlife such as birds or crocodiles can hinder the safe use of waterways. Boats, ships, windsurfers, and kite surfers can also become moving obstacles (or targets, depending on the pilot’s mood).
- Visibility: Good visibility is crucial for safe seaplane operations. Navigating through mist, fog, or at night can be perilous without the help of air traffic controllers, airport radar, and published approaches.
- Infrastructure: Unlike traditional airports, runway lights and taxiway markings, suitable docking and maintenance facilities are uncommon and not uniformly available in all water bodies.
In essence, the usable water area for seaplanes is far more limited than the raw statistics suggest. My claim that we can operate seaplanes in only 1% of that 71% water coverage 71% of the time is a bit of an exaggeration, but it mirrors my floatplane experience. The challenges are real and numerous.
Before aviation, coastline bays and harbours were home to most of the world’s population because ships were the only transport between the West and East and the North and South trading centers. Nutmeg, saffron, cinnamon, salt, pepper, hemp, cotton, gold, copper, you name it, came in via ships. People lived where they prospered.
Bays and harbours were strategic locations for the navy and merchant ships, so they became the prominent locations for seaplane bases.
The pre-war Pan Am seaplane fights started from Key West to Havana in 1927. In 1935, a Pan Am Sikorsky S-42 Clipper flew from San Francisco to Hawaii, harbour to harbour. From their single flight to Havana in 1927, they had grown their route to 250 destinations in 55 countries, flying 130 Clippers by 1939, with plans to expand.
Seaplanes dominated aviation because there were so few runways or airports.
The Rise and Fall of Seaplanes: A Parallel to the Age of Dinosaurs
In a narrative that mirrors the reign of dinosaurs during the Mesozoic era, seaplanes, specifically flying boats, once ruled the waves from the early 1930s until the end of World War Two. These majestic aircraft, capable of taking off and landing on oceans, symbolized the zenith of innovation and luxury in air travel, much like dinosaurs epitomizing prehistoric life’s grandeur. Yet, just as a cataclysmic event ended the dinosaurs’ reign, the Second World War marked the beginning of the end for flying boats, ushering in a new era in aviation.
The Golden Age of Flying Boats
During their heyday, flying boats were the epitome of elegance and practicality. These aircraft were the first reliable transoceanic airliners, linking continents and making global travel a reality. Airlines like Pan American Airways and Imperial Airways capitalized on their ability to operate from water, bypassing the lack of extensive airport infrastructure. Luxuriously appointed cabins with lounges and dining areas defined the travel experience, catering to the world’s elite and offering a glimpse into a glamorous future.
The flying boats of World War II, the PBY, the Goose, the Mallard, the Albatross, and many others provided seaplane services to all parts of the world. They saved numerous lives in relief and rescue operations, often in the worst weather conditions. These sturdy flying hulls proved capable of handling open-water seas.
Flying boats, like the iconic Boeing 314 Clipper and the Short Empire, were technological marvels. They showcased innovations in aerodynamics, marine engineering, and aircraft design. With their large hulls and robust structure, these planes could handle rough seas and long flights, pioneering routes across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Their capability to land in remote locations opened up new frontiers, enabling exploration, transport, and mail delivery to previously unreachable areas.
The Cataclysmic Event: World War Two
Pan American Airways, with its 100-plus flying boats, was also known as the “American Merchant Marine of the Air.” In 1939, the U.S. Congress signed the Neutrality Act, preventing Americans from entering the war. The American President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, knew they could not remain neutral forever and conscripted Pan Am to assist in every neutral way possible, significantly aiding the British in the North Africa conflict. By December 15th, 1942, Pan Am’s Clipper fleet and their pilots were turned over to the Army Air Transport Command. The age of elegance, flying the humongous and ultra-luxurious Boeing 314 Clipper of the Seas, had ended. The Army stripped the Clipper’s plush first-class interiors and painted their exteriors a dull gray.
World War II was a transformative event for flying boats, much like the asteroid’s impact that spelled doom for the dinosaurs. The demands of war accelerated advancements in aviation technology, leading to the development of longer-range, land-based aircraft. These planes required less infrastructure and could operate from a wider variety of airfields, making them more versatile and cost-effective. Additionally, the war effort led to the construction of numerous airstrips worldwide, reducing the strategic advantage that flying boats once held.
The time between the invention of the airplane and the end of the Second World War was equivalent to the batting of a brontosaur’s eyelash. The demand for heavy transport and bomber aircraft created a demand for large, paved runways and airports. Consequently, governments, under the threat of losing the war, invested in and built international airports.
The advent of airports led to the demise of seaplanes and, specifically, flying boats. Landplanes were cheaper to build, maintain, and operate. They could also be built larger to carry more passengers and freight. The economy of scale favoured aircraft on wheels landing at large airports and, consequently, large population centers. People live where they prosper.
The once-grand flying boats were gradually phased out and relegated to niche roles such as search and rescue or maritime patrol. Flying boats’ infrastructure and maintenance costs became prohibitive in the face of more efficient alternatives.
By the end of the war in 1945, the Sikorsky and Martin flying boats had become outdated and were relegated to the backwater routes of Africa. The Boeing Clipper, the grand dame of aviation, had an unfortunate series of accidents, making the new fast, reliable, war-surplus DC-4 the airliner of choice. In rapid succession, the Lockheed Constellation, the Boeing Stratocruiser, the DC-8, and, ultimately, the world-ranging Boeing 707 superseded anything built to fly on water.
Pan Am and flying boats helped shrink the world and bring an enduring world peace unlike any known before. The soldiers and sailors, forced into eye-opening travel during the war, and their burgeoning baby-boomer middle-class families enjoying the prosperity of the 1950s and 60s became the new globe trotters. Ticket prices dropped thanks to the economy-of-scale of airport-to-airport jet travel. Airliners like Pan Am no longer had to fund and maintain their infrastructure. Cities, municipalities, states, and countries saw the benefit of building and funding international and regional airports for all airlines. Privately owned seaplane bases disappeared or were integrated into marine harbours. The era of the flying boats came to a quick and painless end.
Boeing, Lockheed, and Douglas concentrated on building bigger and faster airliners. Lufthansa introduced Economy Class to their B707 in 1960. The Beatles flew into New York on a Pan Am B707 Jet Clipper in 1965. I flew to Sydney, Australia, on an American Airlines B707 in 1971, sans the Beatlemania reception. During this era of economic growth in North America and Western Europe, city populations continued to grow at the expense of rural towns. More people left the farms and forests to live and work in the city. Middle-class families from “first world” nations prospered and wanted to see the world, and the airlines provided the means.
Regional travel elsewhere was restrictive and sporadic. Regional airlines came and went, prospered and died with the economic winds. The 1973, 1980, 1990, 2001, 2008, and 2020 economic downturns ended growth spurts that had promised increasing passenger numbers. Despite these disruptions, regional passenger air travel has outpaced annual growth in GDP worldwide, with the new-to-EU and Indo-Pacific countries leading the way.
The tipping point comes when middle-income families living in the quickly growing population centers in Indonesia, India, Japan, Maldives, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Philippines, Fiji, China, and many other developed countries can afford to travel regionally. These prosperous potential passengers live in countries that don’t have airports in every little city or town—countries that don’t have the infrastructure that Europe, Canada, or America have. How can they travel for pleasure or business?
Conversely, how can tourism and business representatives reach promising remote locations without direct “feeder” regional flights? It is an economic truth that dependable and affordable air service leads to regional growth. Greece, Turkey, Croatia, Costa Rica, Panama, Brazil, Philippines, Venezuela, and many other island or coastal countries could benefit from increased regional connections.
The world’s governments also recognize that economic growth and opportunities lead to a better quality of life and further economic development and opportunities.
Today, the Indo-Pacific makes up more than one-third of all global economic activity. Three of the world’s largest economies—the People’s Republic of China (China), India and Japan—are in this part of the world. By 2040—less than two decades from now—the region will account for more than half of the global economy, or more than twice the share of the United States. By 2030, it will be home to two thirds of the global middle class, having lifted millions out of poverty through economic growth. The region also includes nearly two-thirds of the world’s oceans and is among the most vulnerable globally to the effects of climate change.
That is where modern seaplanes come in.
Cessna, Piper, Beech, and DeHavilland all concentrated on building regional landplanes, albeit with the connections needed to add float gear when required. There was a small market in Canada and Alaska for aircraft to operate on water, so companies such as Edo, CAP, PK, and Wipline provided the floats needed to make the conversion.
Floatplanes were primarily flown into inlets, lakes and rivers, i.e., flat water, to support remote locations. Indigenous communities, mineral exploration, oil seismic surveys, commercial fishing, and sport fishing camps all benefited from floatplane services. Floatplanes connected population centers (the big smoke) with remote and isolated enterprises. These remote work locations were often temporary and mobile, so building runways was out of the question. A runway was built once an established enterprise or community became commercially viable.
As I mentioned earlier, the Grumman Widgeons, Goose, Mallards, Albatross, and Canso PBY continued to be used because they were available as war surplus, but by the 1960s, they were no longer being built. Most flying boats were used in warmer climates where the water stayed open all year, such as the Canadian West Coast, Miami, Hawaii, Australia, Fiji, and New Zealand. These were all ocean saltwater operations where the larger flying boat hulls helped them navigate the open water waves and swells.
Flying boats are the future of seaplane expansion, just as the Clipper was in the 1930s. But not Clipper size. Regional, 9-32 passenger size is ideal. To support developing-nation-status regional airlines, seaplanes must be large enough to provide economies of scale but not too large to compromise production costs or operating costs. Any seaplane OEM aims to balance seaworthiness, ease of use, and production costs. Seaplane operators must balance sea states, the seaworthiness of the aircraft they purchase, and the passenger traffic potential of the destinations.
My focus is on the new markets: the remote areas of the world that are not serviced by airports or share communal seaplane-friendly infrastructure. That would be the other 99% of the world. As Mohan Chunduri of Mallard Enterprises said, India alone has a market of a billion possible passengers. I looked up and down the Ganges River, and I saw hundreds of potential seaplane bases servicing millions, yes millions, of passengers.
What can contribute to the success of a new seaplane operation? A willing government and a growing knowledgeable population with the potential for economic growth.
Government-funded seaplane infrastructure would cost a fraction of what a new airport would cost without the environmental destruction. Vancouver and the Maldives have built new seaplane passenger terminals, knowing these services will continue well into the future. Indonesia, Greece and Croatia have been working on surveys of many potential locations with the goal of building infrastructure for year-round seaplane operations. How about Fiji, Papua New Guinea, West Papua, Indonesia, Nigeria and the Philippines? Where is the government support?
National and regional governments must guarantee essential service supplements to support point-to-point scheduled flights to remote communities without airports. A subsidy on passenger travel would be paid back in the region’s economic growth now connected to a broader market.
Government support to provide seaplane operators with ICAO registration and code-sharing with the airport-to-airport regional or international airlines during the AOC process.
Government-funded GPS approaches to all seaplane waterdromes and safe alternates in case of rough water or transient weather that might temporarily prevent landings.
These are just a few ideas to discuss going forward. If you think there is a “fat chance in hell” governments will get involved, think again. Canada and America are leading the way by funding Indonesia, India, and the Philippines to invest in ecologically friendly projects that improve the lives of their countries’ most vulnerable people, i.e., remote rural communities. Seaplanes, anyone? If you want to learn more about these initiatives, see me at the Future of Seaplanes conference in Miami on February 11th, 2025.
In December 2023, FinDev, Canada’s development finance institution, in partnership with Japanese financial conglomerate Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, launched the GAIA project, a soon-to-be-implemented public-private blended climate finance scheme for addressing the adaptation needs of developing nations. The C$2-billion project, consisting of private sector investments, will dedicate 70 percent of its funds to adaptation projects and provide long-term loans and equity investments to the 19 most climate-vulnerable nations, including India, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
Coming Soon: Operating for Success. The Do’s and Don’ts of Seaplane Startups
