Registered with the Civil Aviation Authority as 'GH-2006', The Princess Margaret is captured in her original 'Mark I' configuration at Dover's first hoverport (situated at the Eastern Docks). The cars driving away in the foreground give a strong indication that this is a late 1960s/early 1970s scene.
Photo: Ferry Fantastic Collection.
British Rail opened the extraordinary first chapter in the evolution of the high speed car ferry when it ordered the world’s first ever vehicle and passenger carrying hovercraft from the factory of the British Hovercraft Corporation at Cowes, on the Isle of Wight. The subsidiary set up to operate the proposed fast ferry service between Dover and Boulogne was Seaspeed.
The first hovercraft built to traverse the English Channel was the Saunders Row Nautical 1, a tiny vessel which made its historic ‘flight’ between Dover and Calais in 1959. The S. R. N. (Saunders Roe Nautical) 1 was slow, fragile, and carried only her pilot. She was merely a prototype which demonstrated how ‘air cushion’ technology could be developed to offer an exciting new method of sea travel. She was designed by Christopher Cockerill, the inventor of the hovercraft, who probably would never have imagined how his original concept would evolve into a Cross-Channel phenomenon which lasted over three decades.
The hovercraft is an amphibious vehicle which floats on a cushion of air contained by a rubber ‘skirt’ fitted to the outside rim of the vessel’s superstructure. Manoeuvrability is achieved by propellers that are mounted on pylons. The propellers, in turn, drive internal fans that inflate the skirt in order to traverse surfaces on an ‘air cushion’. Additional control to direction of movement is aided by tail-end ‘fins’. Hovercraft do not require docking facilities and are exceptionally fast, travelling at well over twice the speed of conventional ships. Their pitfall is their very uncomfortable ride in rough sea conditions.
British Rail made history by introducing the first S. R. N. 4 'Mountbatten Class' car carrying hovercraft, The Princess Margaret in June of 1968. After extensive trials she took her inaugural commercial flight from the hoverport at Dover Eastern Docks to Boulogne on 1st August that year. There were inevitable ‘teething troubles’ and adjustments were made to her skirt which was raised in height at her forward end. Pegwell Bay based rival, Hoverlloyd, took delivery of numbers 002 and 003 in the series, whilst 004 was ordered by Seaspeed for the 1969 season: She was named The Princess Anne and joined her sister at Dover where operations were expanded to include flights to Calais Hoverport. Initially it was expected that these hovercraft would only last five years as they were prototypes; the first car and passenger carrying hovercraft in the world. Ironically they were to become the only remaining such vessels in existence.
During 1977 and 1978 The Princess Anne and The Princess Margaret were returned to The British Hovercraft Corporation (B. H. C.) at Cowes for lengthening to 'Mark III' or 'Super 4' proportions. This included the fitting of larger skirts and propellers. They returned to service much bigger and more powerful, with a nearly 100% increase in vehicle and passenger capacity. After the formation of Hoverspeed in 1981, new diesel-powered hovercraft were promised, but never materialised. The future looked uncertain.
Generally regarded as a very safe form of transport, the hovercraft were not immune from unfortunate incidents. The Princess Margaret seemed to suffer more than her fair share of mishaps. In October 1980 she was hit by a freak wave and sustained damage to her forward starboard superstructure. The following January she collided head on with The Prince of Wales Pier in Dover in thick fog. By far the worst calamity occurred in March 1985 when she was blown in high winds against the Southern Breakwater. A large chunk was knocked out of her starboard passenger cabin and of those that fell into the sea, four lost their lives.
By 1992, the 'Super 4s' were the only hovercraft still in Cross-Channel service. The Seacat made a much heralded arrival, but could never match the superb speed of the hovercraft. The Princess Anne broke a world record by crossing the Channel in just twenty two minutes in September 1995. But the cost of fuelling the hovercraft’s gas turbines was massive, and their continued operation was an expensive novelty. The 'noisy ladies' were retired on 1st October 2000 after over three decades of remarkable service and have since rested at The Hovercraft Museum at Lee-on-The Solent. It is hoped that at least one of these extraordinary vessels can be preserved.
The Princess Margaret & The Princess Anne
Builder: British Hovercraft Corporation, East Cowes, Isle of Wight, England.
Yard numbers: 001, 004.
Dimensions (length, breadth, depth): 39.7 x 23.7 x 2.4 metres. After lengthening: 56.4 x 23.7 x 2.4 metres.
Gross tonnage: 200. After lengthening: 300.
Engines: Four Rolls Royce Proteus gas turbines.
Power: 15,200 B. H. P.
Speed (knots): 60.
Passenger certificate: 250. After modifications: 418.
Car capacity: 30. After modifications: 60.
4.2.1968: The Princess Margaret launched.
11.6.1968: Delivered to Seaspeed, Dover, England.
1.8.1968: Entered service Dover/Boulogne.
19.9.1977: Returned to Cowes for lengthening to Mark III status.
25.10.1981: Registered for Hoverspeed Limited, Dover.
30.3.1985: Collided with the Southern Breakwater, Dover. Four passengers killed.
1.10.2000: Hoverspeed hovercraft services withdrawn. Moved to the Hovercraft Museum at Lee-on-Solent.
8.8.1969: The Princess Anne entered service Dover/Boulogne.
21.10.1969: Christened by H. R. H. Princess Anne.
21.2.1977: Returned to Cowes for lengthening to Mark III status.
7.1978: Visited Oostende on trials.
25.10.1981: Registered for Hoverspeed Limited, Dover.
1.10.2000: Hoverspeed hovercraft services withdrawn. Moved to the Hovercraft Museum at Lee-on-Solent.
Sister vessel, The Princess Anne is found resting at Dover Hoverport on a damp and dreary day in the early 1980s. The formation of Hoverspeed saw the propellers of the S. R. N. 4s painted white with red flashes at the tips. This was a shortlived livery feature. The two stretched 'Mark III' craft were fitted with the world's largest propellers and were themselves the largest hovercraft in existence.
Photo: Ferry Fantastic Collection.
The Princess Anne is seen at full height on the pad at Calais, a formidable sight to behold. She is seen wearing the 'British Ferries' brand on her cockpit and tail end fins. This was during the era that Sea Containers owned Sealink U. K. and Hoverspeed; effectively competing against itself on the Dover Straits.
Photo: Ferry Fantastic Collection.
Competition for British Rails' Seaspeed venture came from Ramsgate-based Hoverlloyd. The privately owned Swedish firm had already initiated foot passenger services to Calais using small S. R. N. 6 hovercraft. Having allowed Seaspeed to take the risk of experimenting with the first of the car carrying generation of hovercraft, the success of The Princess Margaret gave Hoverlloyd the confidence to go ahead with an order for two of its own. According to the B. B. C. 's 'Inside Out' programme Hoverlloyd ran a more glamourous operation; "In terms of enterprise, staff motivation and sheer sexiness, Hoverlloyd won hands down".
The aptly named Swift and Sure were delivered within a few months of each other in 1969. Swift was named by Mrs. Mary Wilson, the wife of the then British Prime Minister. She inaugurated services to Calais from the newly constructed hoverport at Pegwell Bay, just South of Ramsgate. Swift reached speeds of up to one hundred knots on trials, but the operating maximum was limited to seventy knots.
There followed two further S. R. N. 4 craft for Hoverlloyd in 1972 and 1977. However, the merger with Seaspeed saw Pegwell Bay closed to traffic at the end of 1982, after just thirteen years of use. All 'flights' transferred to a crowded hoverport at Dover Western Docks.
In 1983 Sure was ruthlessly taken to pieces for spares to keep her fleetmates maintained. Hoverspeed were later to regret this when they were short of capacity in the mid 1980s. Swift stayed in service until September 1991, by which time Seacats were now operating. During her working life, she completed over thirty thousand Channel crossings. She sat idle on the pad at Dover in the company of her other redundant sisters whilst a buyer was sought for them. No such luck. She incurred damage to her forward port superstructure when a 'Mark III' craft was accidentally reversed into her. Hoverspeed engineers performed some ingenious cosmetic repairs before she was donated to The Hovercraft Museum in June 1994. She had already been stripped of her propellers and any other useful parts, and therefore could not complete her last ever journey under her own power. She was towed to her final resting place. Sadly her structural condition deteriorated badly and the cost of her pitch at the H. M. S. Daedalus Site became too much for the charitable organisation to afford. She had to be broken up in 2004.
Swift & Sure
Builder: British Hovercraft Corporation, Cowes, England.
Yard numbers: 002, 003 (S. R. N. 4 Mark I).
Dimensions (length, breadth, depth): 39.7 x 23.7 x 2.,4.
Gross tonnage: 200.
Engines: Four Rolls Royce Proteus gas turbines.
Power: 15,200 B. H. P.
Speed (knots): 50.
Passenger certificate: 250. After modifications: 282.
Car capacity: 30. After modifications: 37.
17.1.1969: Swift delivered to Hoverlloyd Limited, Ramsgate.
2.4.1969: Entered service Ramsgate/Calais.
25.10.1981: Registered for Hoverspeed Limited, Dover.
11.10.1991: Laid up at Dover International Hoverport.
25.5.1994: Donated to The Hovercraft Museum at H. M. S. Daedalus, Lee-on-Solent.
3.6.1969: Sure delivered to Hoverlloyd Limited, Ramsgate. Entered service Ramsgate/Calais.
7.10.1970: Chartered for a special flight from London (Tower Pier) to Tilbury.
25.10.1981: Registered for Hoverspeed Limited, Dover.
1983: Dismantled for spare parts at Pegwell Bay International Hoverport.
An aerial view of Swift approaching the French Coast in favourable sea conditions. This was during the short-lived period of Hoverspeed services from Dover and Ramsgate (Pegwell Bay).
Photo: Francois Dupiech Collection
After the success of Swift and Sure, Hoverlloyd augmented their service by ordering their third S. R. N. 4 hovercraft from the Cowes based factory of the British Hovercraft Corporation (subsequently inherited by British Aerospace). Named after her inventor, Sir Christopher Cockerill, Sir Christopher was delivered to Pegwell Bay in 1972.
In September of that year Hoverlloyd began sending their three 'Mark I' craft back to their builder for widening to 'Mark II' standard. The two inner cabins on the car deck level were removed to provide additional car spaces and the passenger cabins were extended out to the periphery to make up for the lost space. The additional weight only made a marginal difference to the performance. A tapered skirt was fitted retrospectively to all S. R. N. 4 craft as this was found to give a much better all round performance, particularly in rough weather, and it also improved visibility for passengers.
Sir Christopher was part of the on-going party when operations in the combined Hoverspeed fleet were concentrated at Dover in 1983. However her future was bleak when hovercraft services were drastically scaled down to make way for the Seacat. Sir Christopher made her last crossings of the Channel in 1991 and the following years ensued the undignified process of her decay on the pad at Dover Hoverport. Being of outdated and expensive technology, Sir Christopher did not attract any buyers and therefore suffered a similar fate to her other 'Mark II' sisters, Sure and The Prince of Wales; being broken up for spare parts for the still operational 'Mark III' hovercraft. The process was painfully protracted, starting in 1994 and finally finishing in 1998 when the remains of her shell were cleared away. Some attempt had been made to disguise the unedifying spectacle of her cannabilised hulk during the earlier stages of her demolition by updating the livery of her port side (which was in full view of hoverport traffic).
Those who recognised the potential of the hovercraft, a marvellous British invention, were saddened to see how the opportunity to develop a new generation of more efficient diesel powered craft was passed up. The likes of Sir Christopher are never likely to be seen again on the Channel.
Sir Christopher
Builder: British Hovercraft Corporation, Cowes.
Yard number: 005 (S. R. N. 4 Mark I).
Dimensions (length, breadth, depth): 39.7 x 23.7 x 2.4.
Gross tonnage: 200.
Engines: Four Rolls Royce Proteus gas turbines.
Power: 15,200 B. H. P.
Speed (knots): 50.
Passenger certificate: 282.
Car capacity: 37.
5.6.1972: Delivered to Hoverlloyd Limited, Ramsgate.
14.6.1972: Left Cowes for Pegwell Bay.
3.7.1972: Entered service Ramsgate/Calais.
25.10.1981: Registered for Hoverspeed Limited, Dover.
1991: Laid up at Dover International Hoverport. Subsequently dismantled for spare parts.
The glory days; Sir Christopher is captured embarking foot passengers at a busy Dover International Hoverport in the late 1980s. Note the aforementioned 'British Ferries' brand on her cockpit. One of her sisters can be seen in the background.
Photo: Ferry Fantastic Collection.
This was the last one; the final British hovercraft ever built for Cross-Channel service. Although essentially a repeat of her earlier sisters, the five years that followed the delivery of Sir Christopher saw an amazing number of minor modifications incorporated into The Prince of Wales. The most visible difference was the extra window either side of her 'cockpit'. This would have gone unnoticed by the majority who ever saw her! She was first and only S. R. N. 4 delivered to the widened 'Mark II' specification, with a modest increase in vehicle and passenger capacity compared to the original 'Mark I' standard.
She made her maiden 'flight' in 1977 between Pegwell Bay and Calais for Hoverlloyd. Meanwhile, S. N. C. F. had invested in the construction of two hovercraft that same year to operate with Seaspeed. The first of the French triple-propeller craft was destroyed by fire whilst being fitted out. The second, Ingénieur Jean Bertin, was a complete and utter technical failure and never saw regular service. The tried and tested model which The Prince of Wales was based on was old fashioned in appearance but reliable.
Upon the inauguration of Seacat services from Dover in 1991, The Prince of Wales was retired at just thirteen years old. She languished at the hoverport for a considerable period before suffering a devastating electrical fire which effectively gutted half of her port side superstructure in April 1993. As no buyers had come forward previously, it was not considered worthwhile repairing her, so instead, like Sure a decade previously, she was broken up for spare parts. A sad end to a very short life.
The Prince of Wales
Builder: British Hovercraft Corporation, Cowes.
Yard number: 006 (S. R. N. 4 Mark II).
Dimensions (length, breadth, depth): 39.7 x 23.7 x 2.4.
Gross tonnage: 200.
Engines: Four Rolls Royce gas turbines.
Power: 10,000 kW.
Speed (knots): 50.
Passenger certificate: 282.
Car capacity: 37.
6.1977: Delivered to Hoverlloyd Limited, Ramsgate.
18.6.1977: Entered service Ramsgate/Calais.
25.10.1981: Registered for Hoverspeed Limited, Dover.
10.10.1991: Laid up at Dover International Hoverport.
2.4.1993: Port side destroyed by fire. Subsequently broken up by mechanical digger.
Arrival at Calais on a July afternoon in 1984.
Photo: Ferry Fantastic Collection.
