The 1968 award was made to Christopher S. Cockerell and Richard Stanton-Jones for the design, construction and application of a family of commercially useful Hovercraft.
The Sir Christopher Cockerell building was opened in April 2007 by Lord Somerleyton and Frances Cockerell, daughter of Sir Christopher Cockerell CBE FRS, housing the Construction trades, Boat Building and Computer Aided Design.
It is certain that Beardsley and the British inventor Cockerell conceived the air-cushion vehicle independently.
Discovered by British engineer Christopher Cockerell, the momentum curtain is a unique and efficient way to reduce friction between a vehicle and its surface of travel, be it water or land, by levitating the vehicle above this surface via a cushion of air.
Somerleyton was the home of Christopher Cockerell while he invented the hovercraft using the resources of 'Ripplecraft' a business operating cabin cruisers for the boat hire trade serving holidaymakers cruising the Norfolk Broads.
Christopher Columbus | Christopher Walken | Christopher Lee | Christopher Wren | Christopher Plummer | Christopher Reeve | Christopher Lloyd | Christopher Lambert | Christopher Kasparek | Christopher Hogwood | Christopher Marlowe | Christopher Hitchens | Christopher Guest | Christopher | Christopher Tolkien | Christopher Isherwood | John Christopher | Christopher Fry | Christopher Alexander | Christopher Kane | Christopher Hatton | Christopher Banks | Dennis Christopher | Christopher Wordsworth | Christopher Larkin | Christopher Cockerell | Christopher C. Kraft Jr. Mission Control Center | George Christopher | Christopher Wheeldon | Christopher Nolan |
In 1968 Richard Stanton-Jones won the Sperry Award along with Sir. Christopher Cockerell for "...for the design, construction and application of a family of commercially useful Hovercraft."