Cockerell invented the hovercraft in the 1950s. Cockerell tested various ways of maintaining the air cushion. In 1957 he came up with the idea of a flexible skirt, which gave rise to much derision because nobody could believe that a piece of fabric could be made to support a large vessel. Knighted 1969. Cockerell was born and educated at Cambridge. Employed by the Marconi Company 1935-50, he made a major contribution to aircraft radio navigation and communications. During this period he filed 36 patents. Trained as a development engineer, he set himself the task of trying to make a boat go faster. First he experimented with air lubrication of the hull, but concluded that a major reduction in drag could be obtained only if the hull could be supported over the water by a really thick air cushion. In 1953 he began work on the hovercraft, carrying out his early experiments on Oulton Broad, Norfolk, and filing his first hovercraft patent 1955. Finally in 1958 he found commercial backing; the first full-size hovercraft was built and crossed the English Channel with the inventor on deck. In the 1970s he began to interest himself in the generation of energy by wave power.
