Research on the design of hydrofoils was initiated in Poland at the Politechnika Gdańska (Gdańsk Institute of Technology) in 1953 under the leadership of M.Eng. Lech Kobyliński. Theoretical works led eventually to trials of 4 small motor boats with different types of foil arrangements between 1956 and 1959. These were:
- K-1 (1956) - displacement: 0,43 t, dimensions: 4,61 x 1,17 x 0,27 m, engine: outboard Johnson 14 hp, speed 36 kph.
- K-2 (1956) - displacement: 0,801 t, dimensions: 6,15 x 1,5 x ? m, engine: outboard Evinrude 50 hp, speed usually 25-28 kph, once briefly achieved 48 kph.
- K-3 (1958) - displacement: 1,50 t, dimensions: 6,19 x 1,58 x 1,16 m, engine: M-21 63 hp, speed usually 30 kph, once briefly 41 kph.
- K-6 (1958) - displacement: 0,326 t, dimensions: 4,24 x 0,94 x 0,615 m, engine: motorcycle MZ IFA 15 hp, speed 30 kph.
(rather obviously they are too small to be realistically depicted in SB scale, and I don't have sources good enough for FD)
Data obtained during the trials of these small boats led to creation of a full-sized prototype hydrofoil, designated initially K-4 and unofficialy Wiesia (diminutive form of female name Wiesława). With hull and superstructure made entirely of hydronalium, it had a displacement of 12 t, dimensions of 14,38 x 3,3 (5,92 with foils, that could be entirely removed, thus turning the vessel into fairly ordinary motor boat) x 0,75 m, engine M50 of 1000 hp, speed 53 kts and crew of 3 and up to 12 passengers. Wiesia entered shipyard trials on waters of Gdynia port in autumn of 1961 and on 18 December 1961 it was formally commissioned into the navy (which was greatly interested in the hydrofoil research almost from the start and provided significant support to it) as M-101. Originally it was intended, that after completion of operational trials, it would be used as communications boat on behalf of Navy HQ, primarily around the Gulf of Gdańsk, but constant malfunctions - primarily caused by cracks and deformations of foils - made M-101 spend more time in dockyard than in use, thus on 31 December 1966 it was formally decommissioned.
Poland, Pr. M-101 Wiesia
Relative fiasco of M-101 greatly dampened navy's interest in hydrofoils for a while, but it only inspired scientists from Politechnika Gdańska to further effort. Already in 1961 they provided a study of inshore passenger hydrofoil, which - after Przedsiębiorstwo Państwowe 'Żegluga Szczecińska' (State Enterprise 'Szczecin Shipping') expressed interest in the vessel to operate around Szczecin Lagoon - was accepted to realization by Ministry of Shipping with cost estimated to be 6 mln złotys. For a long time none of the shipyards was willing to take part in the construction process and only in October 1964 Stocznia Rzeczna w Gdańsku Pleniewie (Riverine Shipyard Gdańsk Pleniewo) agreed to built - but with a price tag already increased to 10 mln zł. Hydrofoil (Projekt WZ/3-1000, named Zryw I - meaning 'outburst', 'impulse', 'spurt' or 'severance', depending on context) was built in time - by June 1965, but for 13,725 mln zł!
Zryw I had a welded construction made entirely of hydronalium, except for foils made of chrome-nickel steel. It had displacement of 30,7 t and capacity of 8 t, length of 27,6 m, beam of 6,7 m (hull) and 7,55 m (foils), draught of 2,1 m (full) and 1,1 m (on foils). It was powered by single M50F4 engine of 1200 hp that gave it speed of 35 knots and range of 600 NM. It had a crew of 4 and carried up to 76 passengers in two cabins (forward and aft) separated by engine room (with bridge above). Immediately after completion it was sent to Żegluga Szczecińska where it was supposed to complete a period of limited semi-experimental use, with at least a weekly control of hull and foils on the slipway. But becuse the delivery coincided with summer holiday season, Zryw was immediately sent for full-scale service on highly popular Szczecin - Świnoujście route (twice a day in both directions) and without much regard to it's experimental status and related operational restrictions. Unsurprisingly, after barely 16 days of operation (during which it carried 4028 passengers) one of foils practically broke off (due to faulty welding) and had to be sent to shipyard for redesign (which necessitated introduction of several technologies completely new to Polish industry) and reconstruction, which lasted until April 1967 - by which time the combined price tag rose to 18 246 800 złotys! (and it should be noted, that in then socialist economy inflation was - officialy at least - practically non-existent). From 1 May 1967 Zryw was back in service on Szczecin Lagoon, that lasted until 24 September. During this period there were no problems with foils or hull, and only a single (although relatively serious) engine breakdown. In 1967 hydrofoil carried 8485 passengers during 52 'service' days (so at a much slower pace than in 1966) and was a smash hit among tourists - both because of its novelty character and because the Szczecin - Świnoujście trip on Zryw lasted only 70 minutes, while ordinary ships or buses and trains (on rather circular route) needed around 3 hours, and despite being much more expensive (70 złotys for hydrofoil ticket, compared to 38 złotys for bus or 38,4 for train). Yet, despite that, balance sheet was deeply in red, although mostly because of accounting method, that disregarded the fact that it was essentialy experimental vessel, that wasn't really supposed to be used as a commercial undertaking (unlike her would-be series-produced successors), certain flawed cost assumptions made from the beginning (and which should be done by ministry of shipping, but instead the designers were forced to make - without having any experience in doing these!) and because shipyard happily billed Żegluga Szczecińska for repairs after 1966 crash, even though they were caused by shipyards' sloppy workmanship that was supposed to be covered by warranty. After much bureaucratic infighting over the future of Zryw (and hydrofoils in Poland in general) and "who's to blame", hydrofoil briefly returned to service in 1968, only to suffer from another major engine breakdown, which eliminated it from passengers operations altogether. It remained unused in Szczecin until November 1969 when it was transferred to Przedsiębiorstwo Państwowe 'Żegluga Gdańska' (State Enterprise 'Gdańsk Shipping'), where it remained still unused until December 1970, when navy agreed to take it into service.
Zryw's service as naval auxiliary is directly linked with existence of Hel naval base - a major military establishment (with a coastal defence flotilla composed of submarine chaser and minesweeper squadron, group of auxiliary vessels, base installations, naval sapper/engineers battalion, plus 2 SAM battalions and early warning radar company of air defence forces) located located at the tip of 35 kilometer long peninsula, in a town that's approx. 1200 x 400 meters big - and therefore offering very limited housing prospects for professional soldiers and their families. In practical terms it meant, that much - if not majority - of naval personnel serving at Hel, actually had to live in Gdynia - but the land route from Gdynia to Hel is very cirular and over 70 kilometers long (some 40 NM) - either on rather (then) very poor roads or by infrequent trains. On the other hand, distance between Gdynia and Hel by sea is just 18 km (some 10 NM), so already in 1965 navy commissioned a passenger cutter Bryza (Pr. 722) to transport personnel between these two major bases. When the opportunity to obtain Zryw become reality in 1970, navy - which wasn't particularly concerned about such trivialities as fuel economy (or even costs of repair) - was quick to take advantage of this opportunity, even despite poor experiences with M-101 few years back. After a comprehensive refit Zryw formally entered service in 45 Dywizjon Pomocniczych Jednostek Pływających (45th Auxiliary Vessels' Squadron) on 20 June 1971. Together with Bryza it maintained passenger service (mostly for military personnel, but to some extent also to their families) between Gdynia and Hel until August 1984, by which time navy already had 3 newer passenger hydrofoils of Soviet manufacture, and was scrapped shortly later.
Poland, Zryw-I
Sources (for Polish-built hydrofoils only, sources for Soviet ones will be posted in a dedicated thread):
Koszela Witold, Okręty floty polskiej, Oświęcim 2017,
Zawadzki Wojciech, Polskie wodoloty, "Morze 2017, nr 2.
http://www.forum.dawnygdansk.pl/viewtopic.php?t=2297
http://www.fow.pl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=7747
http://www.fow.pl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=7759
http://www.smartage.pl/zryw-i-pierwszy-polski-wodolot/
Despite the work on the Zryw hydrofoil, Ministry of Shipping decided in mid-1960s to buy a Pr. 342M Kometa class hydrofoil from the Soviet Union. Partially as a back-up and partially because the Zryw was intended for use essentialy within the Szczecin Lagoon, whereas Kometa had a capability to venture further out to sea. Single early model vessel named Kometa-1 (yard no. 634) was delivered in 1966 to Żegluga Szczecińska. On 18 July 1970 a disgruntled laboratory worker attempted to hijack Kometa-1 from Szczecin to Sweden with use of self-procured nitroglycerin. Hijacker tried to storm the entrance to the cockpit, unaware that skipper is essentialy sitting on the hatch. In the process the nitroglycerin accidentialy exploded, immediately killing the assailant (only fatality) and wounding skipper (who was thrown out of the cockpit to the bow) and engineer. Passengers were safely evacuated. In 1976 vessel was renamed Wala (diminution of female name Walentyna) and in 1978 was transferred to the Navy to accompany Zryw on the Gdynia-Hel military line, on which she served until 1988 when she returned for few years to civilian life.
Throughout the 1970s 13 more Kometas - of the Pr. 342ME (MT) variant - were purchased by both Zegluga Gdańska and Żegluga Szczecińska, making Poland one of larger operators of the type. In 1971 Kometa-1 (yard no. 647) - in 1976 renamed Lida (female name) was delivered to Szczecin and operated there until 1991 when she was sold to Greece as Delfini III. In 1972 arrived Powiew (Whiff) (yard no. 826), which until 1988 operated from Gdańsk and was then sold to Greece as Maria. 3 hydrofoils were delivered in 1973: Kometa-3 (yard no. 656, to Szczecin), in 1976 renamed Kalina (female name but also 'viburnum') and in 1990 sold to Greece as Flying Ikaros III; Podmuch (Puff) (yard no. 657, to Gdańsk) sold in 1983 to Greece as Flying Dolphin and Poszum (Rustle) (yard no. 658) in 1988 renamed Wanda and in 1990 sold to Greece as Flying Ikaros I. Largest batch was delivered in 1975 when 5 hydrofoils arrived: Kometa-4 (yard no. 667, to Szczecin) renamed in 1976 Daria (female name) and around 1990-1992 sold to Greece as Delfini XVIII; Kometa-5 (yard no. 668, to Szczecin) year later renamed Lena (female name) and which ended her career on the breakwater at Kołobrzeg on 1 May 1987; Poryw (Gust) (yard no. 672, to Gdańsk) sold in 1990 to Greece as Aegeas; Poświst (Whistle) (yard no. uncertain, to Gdańsk) which in 1984 was transferred to the Navy as Zodiak (Zodiac) for Gdynia-Hel line until 1990s; and finally Pogwizd (Whistle) (yard no. 681, also to Gdańsk) which in 1986 become 3rd Kometa of the Polish navy and also the longest-serving, as she was retired only in 2005. Further 2 hydrofoils were purchased in 1977: Wera (female name, yard no. 682, to Szczecin) sold in 1985 to Italy as Freccia Pontina; Polot (Loftiness) (yard no. 683, to Gdańsk) briefly renamed Monika in 1990 and in the same year sold to Greece as Thisseas. Final Kometa - the Liwia (female name, yard no. 684, to Szczecin) was delivered in 1978 and was used until 1990 and year later was sold to Greece as Delfini XIX. As can be easily noticed, great majority of the class was disposed of around 1990, when economic downturn (caused by collapse of socialist economy and heavy price of transition to market economy inflicted on disposable incomes of general population and therefore their holiday habits) made their unsubsidized operation impossible.
Poland, Kometa-1 (Wala), 1970
Poland, Powiew, ca. 1980
Poland, Pogwizd, ca. 1990
In mid-1970s Polish Kometas were joined by 4 Meteors, all of the Pr. 342E model. Originally numbered Meteor-2 to -5 (no idea why apparently there was no Meteor-1), in they were all renamed with female names in 1976. Meteor-2 (built in 1973, yard no. 923) was renamed Adriana; Meteor-3 (built in 1974, yard no. 935) became Sylwia, Meteor-4 (built in 1975, yard no. 950) became Marzena and Meteor-5 (built in 1976) was rechristened Iwona. All these vessels belonged to Żegluga Szczecińska and were operated generally between Szczecin and Świnoujście and some other tourist destinations in the Szczecin Lagoon and sometimes Bay of Pomerania. They were all retired in 1989, although it didn't meant an end to history of Meteors under Polish flag. In 2008 a small private operator brought to Szczecin former Flying Dutchman (built in 1992, yard no. 059), operated originally in The Netherlands and later briefly in Germany. Named Bosman Express, it's used with moderate success during some tourist seasons, although maintenance issues and fairly high costs mean that her use can be at best described as "intermittent".
Poland, Meteor-2 (Adriana), 1975
Poland, Bosman Express, ca. 2013
Because in the 1960s Poland was attempting to develop passenger hydrofoils of domestic design, she was not interested in purchase of Pr. 340 Raketa hydrofoils when they were initially offered for export in early 1960s. Despite that, Polish shipping companies eventually became operators of the type (with at least 5 being obtained), although all of these hydrofoils were second hand. First two (of the Pr. 340T variant) were bought in 1977 from the bankrupt British line Speed Hydrofoils Ltd that previously operated them in the Greater London area. They were Raketa Westminster (yard no. 537) and Raketa Thames (yard no. 553) - renamed Bogna (female name) and Rakieta-553 (possibly name Sława or Sawa was applied to her and one source suggest 3rd Raketa used in that period) respectively and used by Żegluga Szczecińska mainly on Szczecin - Świnoujście line. Oddly, information about their future fate is extremely hard to find and it can be only assumed that they didn't survived the economic downturn of early 1990s. Further three Raketas arrived in Poland only after the break-up of the Soviet Union, all three coming from Lithuania and being of the Pr. 340ME type. Also, this time the operator was Żegluga Gdańska which used them from the Elbląg port on lines around the Gulf of Gdańsk, both to Polish ports and to Kaliningrad exclave. These hydrofoils were Raketa/Rakieta-02 (yard no. 312?) built in 1962 and purchased in 1997, Raketa/Rakieta-04 (yard no. 333 or 334) built in 1962 and obtained in 2006 and finally Raketa/Rakieta-05 (yard no. 577) built in 1975 and purchased around 1997. Currently they are all out of service, with 04 and 05 being stored (in obviously worsening condition) at the maintenance yard of ŻG at Gdańsk-Stogi.
Poland, Bogna (Pr. 340T), 1978
Poland, Rakieta-04 (Pr. 340ME), 2006
First (of 4) Pr. 17091 Polesie-class hydrofoil to be operated in Poland was, bit surprisingly, not used by any major shipping line, but was leased from 1992 by company Janette (later incorporated into Halex of the same owner) of Elbląg to serve route to Kaliningrad through Zalew Wiślany (Vistula Lagoon). Hydrofoil in question was built in 1991 (yard no. 58) and used in Poland until Halex ran into financial troubles (related to completely different part of their operations and, as many say, to big politics) and vessel was returned to Russia. It was laid-up in Kaliningrad until 2016 when another Polish company bought it, with intention of returning it to service. These plans didn't came to fruition, though, and eventually in 2021 hydrofoil was put for sale as a possible floating restaurant/bar. Next two to arrive - but this time to Żegluga Gdańska, which homeported them at Elbląg - were Polesie-12 (yard no. 72, built in 1989) leased from 2000 and purchased in 2006; and Polesie-9 (yard no. 35, built in 1989) purchased in 2004. Both were marred by frequent malfunctions and conflicts with Russian side about legal side of line's operation and now they are both laid-up in ŻG maintenance yard since around 2012. Latest Polesie to arrive under the Polish flag is Polesie-11 (yard no. 61) built in 1991, she was obtained by ŻG apparently in early 2000s, but I couldn't find much about it except for the mention that in 2006 it was laid-up in Gdańsk. In 2011 she was transferred to Szczecin to be used as Gryf by local operator of somewhat awkward name Wodne Linie Lotnicze ("Water-y Air Lines") on the line to Świnoujście but costs and technical difficulties made the enterprise unsuccessful and in 2013 vessel was sold to Sweden, where she sailed between Stockholm and Sandhamn until was bought back to Szczecin in 2018 but made only few cruises to Świnoujście before costs, collisions and malfunctions ultimately ended the business.
Poland, Polesie-10, 1995
Poland, Polesie-9, 2005
Poland, Polesie-12, 2006
Poland, Gryf, 2013
Poland, Jadwiga, 2018
Żegluga Gdańska had 2 (3?) hydrofoils of the Pr. 10390 Kolhida class. First of them was Delfin I - ex-Kolhida-2 (yard no. 118) built in 1986, purchased by ŻG in 1997 and used particularly on the route to Bornholm (often from Kołobrzeg or Szczecin/Świnoujście), but in September 2003 she suffered a hull leak (that necessitated evacuation of passengers at sea). Between 2004 and 2006 was apparently used in France (homeported in Ajaccio) but likely returned to Poland and some time later was scrapped. Second Kolhida was originally operated by Żegluga Polska from 1997 (ex-Kolhida-1, yard no. 116, built in 1986) as Tornado I until 2003, when it was taken over by ŻG as Delfin IV, yet in 2006 it was sold back to Russia and has been apparently scrapped since.
There is at least one photograph of a hydrofoil with very clear Delfin II on the bridge, but there is no mention of such vessel anywhere else, which is very puzzling.
Poland, Delfin I, 2003
Three second-hand Pr. 352 Voskhod-class hydrofoils were purchased by Żegluga Gdańska in 2000. Merlin was an ex-Voskhod-70 (yard no. 435) built in 1990 for Zapadnoye Rechnoye Parohodstvo in Sovetsk, Merlin 2 was ex-Voskhod-68 (yard no. 429) built in 1989 for Belskoye Rechnoye Parokhodstvo and Merlin 3 was ex-Voskhod-48 (yard no. 388) built in 1985 also for BRP. They were used on and off until around 2008 when all were placed in storage at ŻGs maintenance yard. In 2017 Merlin 2 returned to service on Gdynia - Sopot - Hel line, but unfortunately high ticket price (return trip for a family of 4 almost equalled a weekly wage) meant that enterprise was hardly successful - in fact, despite the existence of timetable, actual cruises happened only when at least 20 would-be passengers could be gathered.
Poland, Merlin 2, 2017
Soon (next week, I guess) I'll post another, much larger thread, with Soviet/Russian passenger hydrofoils.
