Do any aircraft carry boats?

Question

A small boat could be part of general cargo, but that would typically just mean it's unloaded at an airport and transported to the nearest body of water by land infrastructure. This is not what I'm looking for.

Instead, is there any aircraft that can directly deploy a boat to (or retrieve one from) water?

I would imagine there are cases when moving a boat by plane could be useful, especially when there's little or no infrastructure available on land.

Does such an aircraft exist?

This answer includes a picture of a dingy attached to a wing of a PBY Catalina — Dan Pichelman, Sep 08 '19 at 16:26
You may precise what kind of boat (almost every seaplane may carry an inflatable safety dinghy). — Manu H, Sep 08 '19 at 17:59
There’s a super cool picture of a boat mounted under a wing bottom first and a question about its aerodynamics in the site. Can’t search now — Antzi, Sep 08 '19 at 20:59
@Antzi I found a question titled "Why was the boat mounted this way on the underside of the wing on the “Landseaire” flying yacht?" — Nelson, Sep 09 '19 at 01:35
on jet liners, the emergency evacuation inflatable slides are designed to float and be used as lifeboats. Does that count? — Florian Castellane, Sep 09 '19 at 05:41
What about if the aircraft is a boat? For example, the Boeing 314 Clipper. — reirab, Sep 09 '19 at 23:15
I have at home, a photo of a Norwegian (?) P3 Orion which regularly (always?) carries an inflatable type lifeboat, in its bomb-bay, that can be dropped where needed. — MikeB, Sep 10 '19 at 10:57
I guess the inflatable slide doesn't count on modern airliners? — JPhi1618, Sep 10 '19 at 18:57

bjelleklang · Accepted Answer · 2019-09-09T08:55:32.490

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Yes. During and after WW2 several aircraft were converted to serve as "Dumbo" aircraft, dropping boats or rafts near people in distress. Other models were used as well, but the B-17 were among the most prominent. Most were retired when the helicopter gradually took over rescue operations.

Converted B-17 with raft

edited Sep 09 '19 at 08:55

answered Sep 08 '19 at 16:46

bjelleklang

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Put one of these on an aircraft carrier! Then you'd have a boat on a plane on a boat! – Muzer Sep 09 '19 at 13:26
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And put a little model plane on that boat, so you'd have a plane on a boat on a plane on a boat. – Tristan Sep 09 '19 at 14:11
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And paint a small ⛵ on the model plane, so there's a boat on a plane on a boat on a plane on a boat... – Nij Sep 10 '19 at 06:39

score 29 · Answer 2 · edited Sep 09 '19 at 15:52

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It is quite common for float planes to carry canoes & kayaks, e.g.

edited Sep 09 '19 at 15:52

Notts90

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answered Sep 08 '19 at 18:06

jamesqf

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score 27 · Answer 3 · 2019-09-08T16:37:39.330

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Large enough helicopters do it. Above example is a Boeing CH-47 Chinook (businessinsider.com)

But since you have tagged it seaplane, not to my knowledge. It's often the other way around, seaplane tenders tending to seaplanes (or used to). (I take it by boat you don't mean the inflatable and/or small type, as those are not hard to transport.)

Catalina launching beaching gear (pinterest.com)

edited Sep 08 '19 at 16:37

answered Sep 08 '19 at 16:26

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The Chinook can do more than lift boats. It can carry them in its "belly". Here is a video, courtesy of the USAF. More impressively, the Chinook can land on water and "swallow" a moving Zodiac boat, as shown in this video. – Rodrigo de Azevedo Sep 08 '19 at 21:46
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Here is a video of a Chinook "swallowing" a SEAL Zodiac. – Rodrigo de Azevedo Sep 08 '19 at 21:54
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Holy moly - that view from inside the bay of the Chinook, when the water comes pouring in through the back. That is some amazing flying! – Ben Hull Sep 09 '19 at 00:26
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The Spanish COE definition of "high speed" entry does not quite live up to the US SEALS definition of "high speed" entry. Pretty handy trick, though, no matter how fast you do it. – FreeMan Sep 10 '19 at 18:24

score 22 · Answer 4 · answered Sep 09 '19 at 00:27

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I would like to suggest the "Landseaire" flying yacht which carried boats under the wings as per this question.

answered Sep 09 '19 at 00:27

dalearn

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Why is the boat backwards? – Camille Goudeseune Sep 09 '19 at 20:04
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@CamilleGoudeseune - follow the link to the other thread. Your question is exactly what that thread was about. – Paul Sinclair Sep 09 '19 at 23:42
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Wow, what a spirited and multifarious debate! – Camille Goudeseune Sep 10 '19 at 02:10
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@CamilleGoudeseune Some of ‘em can get pretty rowdy around here! – dalearn Sep 10 '19 at 03:15

score 21 · Answer 5 · answered Sep 09 '19 at 07:53

It was one of the main roles for the Vickers Warwick in WWII.

From Wikipedia:

From 1943, Warwicks were loaded with the 1,700 lb (770 kg) Mk IA airborne lifeboat and used for air-sea rescue. The lifeboat, designed by yachtsman Uffa Fox, laden with supplies and powered by two 4 hp (3.0 kW) motors, was aimed with a bombsight near to ditched air crew and dropped by parachute into the sea from an altitude of about 700 ft (210 m).[36] Warwicks were credited with rescuing crews from Halifaxes, Lancasters, Wellingtons and B-17 Flying Fortress, and during Operation Market Garden, from Hamilcar gliders, all of which ditched in the English Channel or North Sea.[37]

More on airborne lifeboats...(also source for image above)

Of course, many WWII bombers carried inflatable dinghies, but I think the answer is looking for something more substantial.

score 19 · Answer 6 · answered Sep 08 '19 at 17:19

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The Fernic T-9 of 1929 was prepared for an Atlantic crossing and as a precaution had removable upper engine nacelles which could double as a life raft, including an outboard engine.

A less planned use of an airplane part as a boat occurred when in 1932 the Junkers W-33 of Hans Bertram and Adolf Klausmann crashed in a remote part of Western Australia. They removed one of the floats and made it into a boat for fishing and excursions.

answered Sep 08 '19 at 17:19

Peter Kämpf

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If they'd only thought to make the whole engine removable for use as a boat, complete with a water prop to swap out for the air prop, the self-rescue would have gone much faster! :) – FreeMan Sep 10 '19 at 18:27

score 4 · Answer 7 · answered Sep 11 '19 at 09:38

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Took me a while to find this photo, from my personal archive from the East Fortune Airshow 2015 of a Royal Norwegian Airforce Lockheed Orion.

As I recall, the commentator stated that the orange object visible in the 'bomb bay' is an air-droppable lifeboat, for their search-and-rescue missions.

answered Sep 11 '19 at 09:38

MikeB

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That seems too small to be a lifeboat. – Nav Sep 11 '19 at 11:29
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@Nav It's likely an inflatable. What you see is the drop housing to keep the boat intact while falling out of the sky and on initial impact. Then once in the water it is deployed either by some manually activated mechanism (like opening a valve on a compressed air can) or automatically activated (some chemical reaction with water initiating) inflation mechanism. – wolfsshield Sep 11 '19 at 14:00
Though at approx 10 ft long and 2 or 3 feet wide, it might just be a small life boat with a parachute package. (Dimensions estimated from the C-130 Fuselage being 10 to 12 ft wide (internal cargo bay width is at 123 inches https://www.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/1555054/c-130-hercules/) – wolfsshield Sep 11 '19 at 14:10
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Allegedly, the length of one of those wingtips is 7ft7in or 2.31m (seperate sources) and that looks comparable to the length of that object, which would be adequate for a one- or two-man emergency liferaft. – MikeB Sep 11 '19 at 15:10
While I wouldn't say it's impossible, the requirements of an airdropped lifeboat might not allow for such a small size: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airborne_lifeboat. This old patent shows more details of the mechanisms such a lifeboat needs: https://patents.google.com/patent/US2686323. It's also possible that the commentator who said it's a lifeboat, may have made a mistake. It resembles a survival kit though: https://lifesupportintl.com/products/sur-0300-00 – Nav Sep 11 '19 at 15:11
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Have a look at https://www.irvingq.com/irvingq-products-services/aerial-delivery-search-and-rescue-products/aerial-delivery-equipment-sar-copy-2/skad-survival-kit-air-droppable/ and see what you think? – MikeB Sep 11 '19 at 15:17
True. It's a life-raft (but not a life-boat :-) ): http://www.safeeurope.co.uk/media/7889/j-christine-belmonte_uni-pac-mission-versatility.pdf – Nav Sep 11 '19 at 15:18
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A raft is, by definition, a kind of boat... – MikeB Sep 11 '19 at 15:24
"Once the container touches the water, the second life raft is expelled and inflated automatically" "Survivor Capacity: 12 Person" – Nicolas Raoul Sep 12 '19 at 07:34

score 2 · Answer 8 · edited Sep 12 '19 at 02:28

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The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III can deploy boats. There are some videos on YouTube (example) that show the process:

edited Sep 12 '19 at 02:28

answered Sep 11 '19 at 23:44

alexpresland

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Do any aircraft carry boats?

8 Answers8