Categories: This Day

July 25, 1959 – A hovercraft crosses the English Channel

The air was calm, the sun was out, and the seabirds were cawing, but nobody could hear them. The birds’ cries were drowned out by the motors of the first practical hovercraft, which was idling on the banks of the English Channel in Calais, France. It was on this day in 1959 that the first practical hovercraft, dubbed the SR.N1, or Saunders-Roe Nautical 1, would make a daring attempt to cross the Channel. It was no coincidence the event was taking place 50 years to the day that Louis Bleriot became the first person to fly across it in an airplane. 

Captain Peter Lamb, navigator John Chaplin and Christopher Cockerell, the inventor of the momentum curtain as applied to the hovercraft principle, waved goodbye as a crowd looked on, everyone unsure what would transpire during the craft’s passing. It had only been shown to the public for the first time the previous month. The daring crossing would prove successful.

Just more than two hours after leaving France, a cheerful group standing on the shores of Dover welcomed the SR.N1 and its team. The success of the hovercraft and its use as a testing device would lead to the advancement of this type of vehicle. In less than four years following the SR.N1’s maiden voyage, multiple hovercraft were being designed and produced by companies in the United Kingdom, as well by Mitsubishi

Shipbuilding & Engineering in Japan. The original SR.N1 resides at the Science Museum at Wroughton.
Brian Corey

Recent Posts

November 20, 2011 – Famed Ferrari designer Sergio Scaglietti dies

Scaglietti, left, in his body shop Sergio Scaglietti opened Carrozzeria Scaglietti, an auto repair and…

1 day ago

November 19, 1959 – Ford announces the end of Edsel

Too much money. Too much hype. Too much of the same old thing. Designed to…

2 days ago

Rare 1955 Mercedes Truck for Sale

This 1955 Mercedes-Benz 170 S-D Diesel pickup truck appears to be an exceptionally rare find,…

2 days ago

November 18, 1960 – End of the line for DeSoto

1961 DeSoto Less than a week after Chrysler acquired Dodge Brothers, it debuted its new…

4 days ago

November 17, 1986 – The Assassination of Renault CEO Georges Besse

Georges Besse (Renault) On this day in 1986 Georges Besse, the 58-year-old CEO of French…

4 days ago

November 16, 1904 – The history of auto theft in Los Angeles begins with first recorded stolen car in the city

1905 White steam car. Not the first stolen car, but similar. This one is known…

5 days ago