Hovertravel was visited today by a group of visually impaired pupils from Portsmouth-based Craneswater Junior School. Hosted by a dedicated Hovercare Ambassador, the children were treated to a flight on the hovercraft and had the opportunity to ask questions of the pilot and crew.

Andy Parnell, Hovercare Ambassador, explains: “Our mission at Hovertravel is to make a trip on our hovercraft as accessible as possible. We train our staff to be aware that some customers will have different needs for information, communication and assistance when using our service and events like today’s visit give those customers the opportunity to experience a hovercraft flight and learn more about what happens behind the scenes of the world’s only year-round passenger hovercraft operation.”

Hovertravel’s Hovercare initiative has worked on several activities for the blind and partially-sighted including a themed Try Before You Fly event for World Sight Day and training courses for guided boarding, increased awareness of how loss of vision affects customers (conducted by Barclays Accessibility Team) and how to assist customers with guide dogs.

Caz Gilmore, VI Teaching Assistant at Craneswater Junior School adds: ”Visits to companies like Hovertravel are vital for the children’s education and initiatives like Hovercare really do build confidence in them that they can enjoy experiences such as a hovercraft flight.”

Caption: Captain Jock Darrock explains how to fly to a hovercraft to pupils from Craneswater Junior School