or boats with an aluminum shell and a wooden interior. Lighter materials use less fuel and composites are more resistant to corrosion in the harsh environment. The pontoons in modern hydrocopters typically have more buoyancy to allow for heavier cargo loads. Safety Hydrocopters, like air boats, are top heavy. This can cause issues with capsizing (rolling over) or flipping. Hydrocopters usually have less points of contact on the water and a high center of gravity so risk of capsizing is increased, especially in rough seas. However, they are usually safer than air boats because they travel at much slower speeds. Consequently, hydrocopters don’t often get out of displacement mode, which means that most of the weight of the hydrocopter is supported by the water. Modern hydrocopters topically have two compartments. The rear compartment houses the engine and the front cabin houses the passengers. These two compartments provide the hydrocopter with much more stability when doing sharp turns. Most hydrocopters are now equipped with radar, GPS and/or AIS to be able to locate other vessels and to be visible to other vessels. This equipment helps drivers in adverse weather when visibility is very low, which is typical of the Arctic coastal regions. Hydrocopters are one of the few vehicles that can operate in heavy snow or rain. Hydrocopters are also commonly equipped with other safety equipment such as Life jackets, VHF radios and EPIRBs (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons). The safety regulations implemented on hydrocopters is the same as the regulations on a boat of that size. Many hydrocopters are built for search and rescue operations and these hydrocopters carry much more safety equipment. The interior of these hydrocopters are outfitted similar to ambulances. Military use The Finnish Border Guard used hydrocopters from the 1970s to the 2000s. The Finnish Border Guard then replaced their fleet of hydrocopters with hovercraft because of stricter work safety standards. Many towns and cities in Finland and Sweden used the surplus military hydrocopters and continue to use hydrocopters today in some capacity as search and rescue craft because they are cheaper than hovercraft and can be used safely in ice and water where other vehicles could not work. See also Aerosani References Amphibious vehicles