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  "path": "/auto/166636-gaz-16-soviet-hovercraft-car/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-05T17:26:00.000Z",
  "site": "https://english.pravda.ru",
  "tags": [
    "Cars"
  ],
  "textContent": "In 1962, engineers at the Gorky Automobile Plant (known for Russian initials as GAZ) decided that roads were yesterday's solution. They built a machine that ignored friction and gravel surfaces. It did not roll — it hovered. The GAZ-16 was an ambitious leap into a future where swamps, rivers, and snowfields turned into high-speed highways. Yet instead of triumph, the project faded into obscurity.\nA Radical Idea Built on Familiar Foundations\n\nThe Soviet Union of the 1960s was full of contrasts: while some developed secret Arctic vehicles, others struggled through impassable rural mud. The GAZ-16 was designed not for parades, but as a response to the chronic lack of roads.\nEngineers used the body of the iconic GAZ-21 Volga as a base, stripping it down into a futuristic air-cushion platform. Centrifugal fans pumped air beneath the chassis, creating pressure that lifted the 1.5-ton machine about 15 centimeters above the ground.",
  "title": "GAZ-16: Why the Soviet Hovercraft Disappeared from History"
}