Military
Griffon Hoverwork's products, primarily versions of their lightweight Griffon 2000TD hovercraft, have been purchased by numerous militaries around the world, including the Royal Marines, the Korean Coast Guard, the Pakistan Navy, the Swedish Coast Guard,[10] the Polish Border Guard, the Estonian Border Guard, and the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service.
During 1993, the United Kingdom's Royal Marines received the first of several Griffon Hoverwork-built 2000TDs. Principally used for their amphibious capabilities, these craft participated in the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The Royal Marines used 2000TDs to perform high-speed patrols along the waterways of the Zubayr river, south of Basra.[3] In 2008, Britain decided to upgrade the Royal Marines' 2000TD fleet to the 2400TDs configuration, which resulted in a higher payload capacity along with increased ballistic protection for its occupants.
Starting in 2000, production of the Griffon Hoverwork 8000TD became a major endeavour of the firm; its principal customer was the Indian Coast Guard, for which a joint manufacturing arrangement was made with the Indian company Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers.[3] At the time, this deal was the largest to ever be made by the company.[11] Additional operators for the 8000TD series have included three examples supplied to the Korea Coast Guard and five craft for the Saudi Arabian Border Guards.[12]
In 2010, in response to the 2010 Pakistan floods, the Pakistan Navy deployed its fleet of 2000TDs in a humanitarian aid capacity, assisting the 20 million people across the country; the fleet was able to deliver medical supplies and meet other logistical needs across uncharted waters that had otherwise isolated whole communities.[3] That same year, the Pakistan Navy procured a pair of 8100TD hovercraft, each being capable of carrying up to 10 tonnes of payload.
During 2010, Griffon bid for work on the Ship-to-Shore Connector, which would replace the United States Navy's Landing Craft Air Cushion.[13] On 6 July 2012, it was announced that a rival bid headed by Textron Marine & Land Systems had been awarded the $212.7 million fixed-priced contract instead.[14]
During the 2010s, the Colombian Naval Infantry has introduced several hovercraft into their forces; these have been deployed in their long-running conflict against FARC insurgents within the challenging terrain of the Amazon rainforest. According to John Carlos Florez, commander of Colombia's Naval Force South, hovercraft have enabled year-round movement, which was previously impossible with conventional vehicles.[15]
Civil
In 1983, Griffon Hoverwork supplied the South Coast hovercraft operator Hovertravel with the first of their AP1-88 hovercraft; these were used to ferry passengers between Southsea and the Isle of Wight up until 2016.[3] Hovertravel elected to replace its AP1-88 fleet with a pair of Griffon Hoverwork's 12000TD hovercraft, known as Solent Flyer and Island Flyer, which have been in operation since then.[3][16]
In 2000, Griffon Hoverwork supplied the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), a UK based charity dedicated to saving lives at sea, with its first hovercraft.[3] Two years later, the RNLI began operating a fleet of seven 470TD hovercraft, known as the H class. These are typically used for search and rescue over coastal terrain, including mud flats and quicksand.[3]
