tech article

Hybrid ESTOLAS aircraft combines aspects of a plane, helicopter, hovercraft and airship

• The hybrid ESTOLAS aircraft features a short, squat design with propeller engines mounted at the rear of a disc-shaped main body that houses a rotor like a helicopter's. 
• The aircraft is composed almost entirely of lightweight composite materials and the body and can also be filled with helium to further reduce the aircraft's weight and provide additional lifting power.
• This would allow it to take off and land at lower speeds on short runways and, if no conventional runways are available, it can use its air-cushioned skirt and wheel-skis to take off and land on any natural surface, such as fields, marshes, water or snow. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=36i1K2-Zzlg