https://cast.pudmed.ir/videos/watch/0c644b4c-57aa-41e1-a080-3e2822f51dbd The 1960s. American spy satellites photograph a giant craft in the Caspian Sea. It has wings, but it doesn't fly. It has a hull, but it's not a ship. It moves at 300 knots, just a few meters above the water – invisible to radar, immune to torpedoes. NATO calls it the Caspian Sea Monster. The Soviets call it an ekranoplan – a ground‑effect vehicle. This episode reveals the full story: the science, the ambition, and the tragic end of a unique weapon. In this full-length episode: 🌊 The Science of Ground Effect – What happens when a wing flies within its own wingspan of the ground? Increased lift, reduced drag. We explain the physics simply: the air cushion trapped beneath the wing turns the vehicle into a high‑speed, low‑altitude missile platform. Perfect for the Caspian and the Black Sea. 🦅 KM – The Caspian Sea Monster – The prototype (Korabl Maket). Eight jet engines on the nose (to push) and two on the tail (to lift). 100 meters long – bigger than a Boeing 747. We examine its 1966 first flight, its 1975 crash (pilot error, not design), and the incredible photos that confused Western intelligence for years. ⚡ Lun – The Missile Carrier – The operational ekranoplan. Armed with six SS‑N‑22 Sunburn anti‑ship missiles, designed to kill NATO carrier groups. We break down its 400‑ton takeoff weight, its speed of 550 km/h, and its unique flying experience – a bumpy, vibrating ride just 4 meters above the waves. Rare footage of a Lun on a combat patrol. 💀 Why It Failed – The ekranoplan was brilliant but impractical. It could not operate in rough seas. It could not fly over land. It required a huge, expensive maintenance base. Only one Lun was completed. A second was left unfinished. After the USSR collapsed, the surviving Lun sat rusting in Kaspiysk – until it was towed to a museum in 2021. 🕊 The Smaller Cousins – A‑90 Orlyonok – A troop‑transport ekranoplan that could also fly as a conventional seaplane. We cover its service with the Soviet Navy, its ability to carry 150 marines, and its 2007 retirement. The last Orlyonok is now a museum piece near Moscow. 🇷🇺 Modern Resurrection? – Russia has shown interest in new ekranoplans for the Caspian and Arctic. But will they ever return? We analyze the challenges and the unlikely possibility of a ground‑effect comeback. Sat, 13 Jun 2026 14:43:03 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://cast.pudmed.ir https://cast.pudmed.ir/lazy-static/avatars/eed1cb33-d04c-4158-b000-2f2fb9545c13.png https://cast.pudmed.ir/videos/watch/0c644b4c-57aa-41e1-a080-3e2822f51dbd All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://cast.pudmed.ir/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.