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Personal watercraft
A personal watercraft (PWC)—sometimes referred to as a Jet Ski (despite this being a specific product line by Kawasaki) or water scooter—is a primarily recreational watercraft that is designed to carry a small number of occupants, who sit or stand on top of the craft, not within the craft as in a boat.
Prominent brands of PWCs include Kawasaki (Jet Ski), Sea-Doo, Yamaha, and Taiga.
PWCs have two style categories. The first and the most popular is a compact runabout, typically holding no more than two or three people, who mainly sit on top of the watercraft as one does when riding an ATV or snowmobile. The second style is a "stand-up" type, typically built for only one occupant who operates the watercraft standing up as in riding a motorized scooter; it is often used more for doing tricks, racing, and in competitions. Both styles have an inboard engine driving a pump-jet that has a screw-shaped impeller to create thrust for propulsion and steering. Most are designed for two or three people, though four-passenger models exist. Many of today's models are built for more extended use and have the fuel capacity to make long cruises, in some cases even beyond 160 kilometres (100 miles).
Personal watercraft are often referred by the trademarked brand names of Kawasaki (Jet Ski), Yamaha (WaveRunner), Bombardier (Sea-Doo), Elaqua (E-PWC) and Honda (AquaTrax).
Personal watercraft boat conversion kits exist as Waveboats.
The United States Coast Guard defines a personal watercraft, amongst other criteria, as a jet-drive boat less than 12 feet (3.7 m) long. There are many larger "jetboats" not classed as PWCs, some more than 40 feet (12 m) long.
Water scooters—as they were originally termed—were first developed in the United Kingdom and Europe in the mid-1950s, with models such as the British 200cc propeller-driven Vincent Amanda, and the German Wave Roller. Two thousand Vincent Amandas were exported to Australia, Asia, Europe and the United States.
The Sea Skimmer was introduced in 1961 as a highly maneuverable version of a propelled surfboard. It was 1.7 m (5.6 ft) long, powered by an inboard/outboard motor and reached speeds up to 40 km/h (25 mph). The rider lay on the boat, controlling the speed with hand throttles and using the feet as rudders. Originally manufactured in Kansas City, operations moved to Boynton, Florida, in 1962, and the name was changed to Aqua-Skimmer. Aqua-Skimmer ceased operations in 1962 and sold its inventory to the military. Renamed Aqua Dart (Aqua Dart INC), the Sea Skimmer, Aqua Skimmer, Aqua Dart was modified for military requirements, and saw service in 1962 river reconnaissance missions in Vietnam and other military missions until the 1970s.
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Personal watercraft AI simulator
(@Personal watercraft_simulator)
Personal watercraft
A personal watercraft (PWC)—sometimes referred to as a Jet Ski (despite this being a specific product line by Kawasaki) or water scooter—is a primarily recreational watercraft that is designed to carry a small number of occupants, who sit or stand on top of the craft, not within the craft as in a boat.
Prominent brands of PWCs include Kawasaki (Jet Ski), Sea-Doo, Yamaha, and Taiga.
PWCs have two style categories. The first and the most popular is a compact runabout, typically holding no more than two or three people, who mainly sit on top of the watercraft as one does when riding an ATV or snowmobile. The second style is a "stand-up" type, typically built for only one occupant who operates the watercraft standing up as in riding a motorized scooter; it is often used more for doing tricks, racing, and in competitions. Both styles have an inboard engine driving a pump-jet that has a screw-shaped impeller to create thrust for propulsion and steering. Most are designed for two or three people, though four-passenger models exist. Many of today's models are built for more extended use and have the fuel capacity to make long cruises, in some cases even beyond 160 kilometres (100 miles).
Personal watercraft are often referred by the trademarked brand names of Kawasaki (Jet Ski), Yamaha (WaveRunner), Bombardier (Sea-Doo), Elaqua (E-PWC) and Honda (AquaTrax).
Personal watercraft boat conversion kits exist as Waveboats.
The United States Coast Guard defines a personal watercraft, amongst other criteria, as a jet-drive boat less than 12 feet (3.7 m) long. There are many larger "jetboats" not classed as PWCs, some more than 40 feet (12 m) long.
Water scooters—as they were originally termed—were first developed in the United Kingdom and Europe in the mid-1950s, with models such as the British 200cc propeller-driven Vincent Amanda, and the German Wave Roller. Two thousand Vincent Amandas were exported to Australia, Asia, Europe and the United States.
The Sea Skimmer was introduced in 1961 as a highly maneuverable version of a propelled surfboard. It was 1.7 m (5.6 ft) long, powered by an inboard/outboard motor and reached speeds up to 40 km/h (25 mph). The rider lay on the boat, controlling the speed with hand throttles and using the feet as rudders. Originally manufactured in Kansas City, operations moved to Boynton, Florida, in 1962, and the name was changed to Aqua-Skimmer. Aqua-Skimmer ceased operations in 1962 and sold its inventory to the military. Renamed Aqua Dart (Aqua Dart INC), the Sea Skimmer, Aqua Skimmer, Aqua Dart was modified for military requirements, and saw service in 1962 river reconnaissance missions in Vietnam and other military missions until the 1970s.