This problem was overcome by the addition of a skirt around the base of the vehicle to create a chamber in which the pressure could be increased without the need for additional power. This remains the basic design in hovercraft today, although the design of the skirt may range from a simple curtain to more sophisticated designs (Bourg 164)
Hovercraft Developments History of Hovercraft Invention of Hovercraft The concept of a vehicle which would be able to travel on cushions of air was first proposed back in 1877 by the English engineer John Thornycroft, although Christopher Cockerell is credited with the actual invention. Cockerell developed and built the first hovercraft in 1955 (Johnson 550)
who were predominantly an aircraft manufacturing firm. The hovercraft then entered public use in 1962, where the first passenger hovercraft began operation across the Dee Estuary in Scotland (Sebastian 179)