– War is Boring – The first of China’s four giant hovercraft has been spotted conducting trials on the Pearl River in the country’s south. Meanwhile, hovercraft number two is being assembled in nearby Guangzhou. It’s not hard to see why Beijing is spending a reported $300 million on the four Zubr-class hovercraft—two built in Ukraine and two in Guangzhou. Able to speed a distance of 300 miles in six hours while carrying eight armored vehicles or 500 marines apiece, the 187-foot-long Zubrs will help Beijing back up its once-empty threat to invade Taiwan in the event the island nation ever formally declares independence from the mainland.