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 Gibbs is taking orders for the Phibian, a 30-foot amphibian that is aimed at first responders. By BRYAN LAVIOLETTE
ARLINGTON, Va. – As Gibbs attempts to bring its products to market, a pair of attorneys are helping the company navigate issues with getting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to allow the amphibious vehicles to be sold in the U.S.
Andrea Campbell and Richard Penna were on hand for the public demonstration of the Gibbs Phibian Feb. 7 at Columbia Island Marina, which sits in the shadow of the Pentagon and just across the Potomac River from the nation’s capitol.
Penna said the key is getting the EPA to develop a new classification for what Gibbs calls High Speed Amphibians because classifying Gibbs’ products as boats or road-going vehicles doesn’t work.
“It’s a question of how it’s categorized,” Penna said.
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 Alan Gibbs' daughter Debbi Gibbs talks with Mike Moore, center, New Zealand ambassador to the United States, and Neil Jenkins, chairman of Gibbs Technologies. By BRYAN LAVIOLETTE
ARLINGTON, Va. – When they were growing up in New Zealand, Alan Gibbs would ask his children daily to “tell me something interesting.”
Gibbs’ daughter, Debbi, said her dad would challenge what they said to see if they could back it up. They learned to always be ready to defend their position on any topic. She called them “endless Alan challenges.”
Debbi Gibbs was in Washington last week representing her father at the media launch of the Gibbs Phibian, where the company founded by her father announced that it would begin taking orders for the Phibian and Humdinga, which are targeted at first responders, but will be available to the general public as well.
“It’s so tantalizing for people to see so many interpretations of the technology,” Debbi Gibbs said.
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 The Gibbs Humdinga is 21.5 feet and is designed to extremely difficult and remote terrain. By BRYAN LAVIOLETTE
ARLINGTON, Va. – While the Gibbs Amphibians Phibian stole the show at the company’s media event this week, Gibbs also announced that it would begin taking orders for the smaller Humdinga II amphibious vehicle.
Gibbs is now taking orders for both the Phibian, a 30-foot amphibian, and the Humdinga, which is 21.5 feet. While the company is targetting first responders with both vehicles, they will be available for sale to the general public. It expects to begin deliveries within 9 to 15 months.
Gibbs has shown the Humdinga, which was designed primarily for military applications, for several years. It said this week that the Humdinga will be built in the United Kingdom, while the Phibian would be built in the U.S. The company did not offer more details on where the vehicles would be built. Prices were also not announced.
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 The Gibbs Phibian skims across the water on the Potomac River with the Washington Monument rising in the background.
By BRYAN LAVIOLETTE
ARLINGTON, Va. – Gibbs has launched a new High Speed Amphibian that it says will revolutionize the way rescue crews are able to respond to disaster situations.
With a dramatic backdrop of the Pentagon at the Columbia Island Marina in Arlington, Va., Gibbs demonstrated the new amphibious vehicle, which is 30 feet long and can carry 15 people including a crew of three. It can travel at more than 30 mph on water and after a 5-second transition, travel at more than 80 mph on land.
“Natural disasters in recent memory, such as the earthquake and tsunamis in Japan, Thailand, Sri Lanka and elsewhere in Asia; as well as the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, illustrate the need for amphibians as capable, versatile and efficient as Phibian,” Gibbs Technologies Chairman Neil Jenkins said.
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 The Gibbs Phibian is a large High Speed Amphibian that the company is aiming at first responders such as fire departments and rescue crews. By BRYAN LAVIOLETTE
It’s taken a lot longer than the company had hoped and it’s not the High Speed Amphibian ATV enthusiasts are waiting for, but Gibbs Technologies is finally demonstraing a fast amphibian it says will be targeted at first responder agencies such as fire departments and rescue crews.
Called the Phibian, Gibbs – which may be changing its name to Gibbs Amphibians – showed the vehicle at a special media event in advance of the American Society of Navel Engineers’ annual conference in Virginia. Check back later today for a full report on the Phibian.
In an invitation to members of the media, Gibbs said that the vehicle is capable of traveling at highway speeds on land and more than 30 mph in the water.
A fast amphibian would allow rescue crews to more quickly reach distressed boaters on open water and it would allow access to otherwise inaccessible areas. In keeping with that mission, the Phibian would appear to be significantly bigger than the Quadski.
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 Gibbs Quadski would seem to have dozens of unique uses. Read some here and suggest some of your own. Most readers of this site probably don’t get this, but I run into a lot of people who ask me why someone would want an amphibious all-terrain vehicle. Many wonder if there is a market for such a vehicle.
But readers of this site have suggested several uses for Gibbs Technologies’ Quadski, a one-person vehicle, which is essentially a cross between an ATV and a personal watercraft.
Once the Quadski finally goes on sale – Gibbs’ current plan is to begin limited production in mid-2012 – owners will probably find all sorts of uses for the revolutionary vehicle, which will be capable of 45 mph on land or water and transition between the two in as little as 3 seconds.
Until then, all we can do is look at the uses some FastAmphibians readers have suggested. Here are some of their best suggestions, along with a couple more.
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Gibbs has delayed production of the Quadski once again. Now set for mid-2012, the production version of the Quadski will sit higher with far greater clearance in the wheel wells. By Bryan Laviolette
The long-awaited update from Gibbs Technologies on production of the Quadski fast amphibian is not good news. Production has been delayed again.
According to a Gibbs spokesman, initial, limited production of the Quadski is now set to begin in mid-2012.
“The Quadski is currently being redesigned to address worldwide regulations,” the spokesman said. “We anticipate production to begin in mid-2012, depending upon when we receive the necessary regulatory approvals.”
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The July event for Gibbs came and went with none of the news promised by a company spokesman. But the company continues testing prototypes of the Quadski amphibious all-terrain vehicle and news of production plans is expected soon.
Watch FastAmphibians.com for the latest news from Gibbs.
By Bryan Laviolette
Gibbs Technologies is preparing for a major announcement regarding its fast amphibians, one that will come as a big surprise, a company spokesman said Friday.
Gibbs, has already announced plans to begin producing its Quadski amphibious all-terrain vehicle in limited numbers in
the fourth quarter, so further announcements are expected for things like the engine supplier and the location of the factory where the Quadski will be built. But our source close to the company made it sound like there would be more than just Quadski details.
“You’re going to be really surprised,” the spokesman said about Gibbs’ planned statement, scheduled for June 21 during a special outing arranged by the its public relations company, Autocom Associates.
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The production version of the Quadski may look similar to this pre-production model, but the body will sit higher with far greater clearance in the wheel wells. A Gibbs Technologies spokesman told a FastAmphibians.com reader that limited production of the Quadski is expected to start in the 4th quarter with initial sales planned for the United States. Sales to other countries are planned for later.
FastAmphibians reader Philippe, a resident of Belgium, shared the letter from Larry Weis, who serves as the company’s chief spokesman.
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Why do you like amphibians? What is your interest in fast amphibious vehicles? How would you use one? Where? Contact me at laviolette.autoscribe (at) yahoo.com
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