Sir
Christopher Cockerell
1910-1999 |
Sir Christopher
Cockerell was one of the most remarkable inventors of the 20th
Century.
In his life
he filed dozens of patents but it is as father of the hovercraft
that history will remember him.
Born in
1910 near Cambridge, Sir Christopher's scientific bent was nurtured
at Gresham's School at Holt in Norfolk.
He studied
engineering at Cambridge University, and joined Marconi as a
wireless engineer in 1935.
He produced
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.
He used
a baked bean 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.
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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