United States Hydrofoil
History of Hydrofoiling
Hydrofoils have been used on different
watercraft for nearly 100 years. They have been used on engine driven
watercraft both large and small, sailboats, human powered boats,
windsurfers, wakeboards, and our favorite water ski(s).
The first hydrofoil boat dates back to
1906 designed and built by the Italian Inventor, Enrico Forlanini
(1948-1930). The foil design was made from the classic "Ladder" type
construction which has multiple struts coming down with multiple wings
between them. It had a 60 hp engine driving two counter-rotating air
props and during testing in 1906, the craft reached a top speed of 42.5
Alexander Graham Bell and Casey Baldwin
developed a boat based on Floranini's Ladder style foil in 1919. Bell
was the primary designer and Baldwin built the boat based on their
designs. The boat was called the Hydrodrome 4 (HD-4) and set the record
for the fastest hydrofoil boat speed at 60 knots which stood until the
In the 1960s, many countries developed
their own version of a hydrofoil ship for their militaries. The US Navy
and Boeing developed the first Jetfoil, the Patrol Hydrofoil Missileship
(PHM), which was the predecessor to the Jetski. They also developed a
commercial passenger version.
In the early 1960s, the first "water
ski" hydrofoil was developed by Walter Woodward, an aeronautical
engineer from Upper Newton Falls, Massachusetts. The first person to
test and fly Woodward's invention was Frazer Sinclair. This was the
beginning of towed hydrofoiling!
The United States Hydrofoil Association
(USHA) became a sport discipline of USA Water Ski in January 2005.
For a complete history of hydrofoiling,