Photos: A plane that skims the sea

On Wednesday, Chinese media reported that scientists at Shanghai's Tongji University have developed a so-called wing-in-ground aircraft for amphibious use. Photos of that aircraft aren't available, but this Russian WIG plane gives an idea of what the Chinese model might look like. The Aquaglide taxis across the water at the Black Sea resort of Gelendzhik, in a photo from September 2006.

WIG aircraft are designed to fly just a few feet above a surface. That's meant to give them better fuel consumption because of the ground effect, an aerodynamic principle that provides extra lift at very low altitudes. The cushion of compressed air they ride on makes them a close cousin of hovercraft.

China Daily reports that the Tongji design would fly as low as a half-meter to 5 meters at speeds up to 300 kilometers per hour. "It's as safe as ships, although five or six times faster," said Xu Zhengyu, an associate professor on the research team, according to China Daily. "And it can carry much more weight than ordinary airplanes while costing half as much and using half as much fuel."