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Born
in 1910 near Cambridge, Sir Christopher's interest in science was
encouraged at Gresham's School at Holt in Norfolk.
 Sir
Christopher Cockerell 1910-1999 |
He
studied engineering at Cambridge University, and joined Marconi
as a wireless engineer in 1935.
He
made 36 inventions for the company, for which he was paid Β£10 each.
In
1950 he left Marconi and bought a boat building/hire business on
the Norfolk Broads.
Baked beans and fireworks
He
used a baked beans' can and a firework in an early attempt to prove
that a vehicle could float on air.
He
finally proved that it was possible on Oulton Broad near Lowestoft
in the early 1950s. The first commercial vessel crossed the channel
in 1959.
Hovercrafts
are now used all over the world and the Royal National Lifeboat
Institution in north Norfolk has one of only two hovercrafts in
the UK, for sea rescue.
Cockerell
had to fight for years to get any financial recognition and he believed
inventors often got a raw deal.
Sir
Christopher Cockerell died on the 40th anniversary of the launch
of the hovercraft, June 1st 1999.
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Recommended reading
By Sheila McKeown, a librarian at the Millennium Library in
Norwich.
1000
Inventions & Discoveries, by Roger Bridgman.
Mega
Book of Ships by Lynne Gibbs. Zizag 2003. ISBN 1903954991.
You can get hold of these books through
your local library.
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