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John Gifford is one of the world's top hovercraft designers and manufacturers. He comes from a family of hovercraft enthusiasts – his father worked with Christopher Cockerell, inventor of the hovercraft, and was a pioneer in the field. John was fascinated by this new form of transport when he saw his first hovercraft at a hovershow in 1968.
When John was 16 he built his first hovercraft using plans he found in an engineering magazine. This single-seat craft was built from plywood and a couple of motorbike engines, and John raced it at events organised by the Hovercraft Club of Great Britain. Now he's an expert hovercraft driver; he recently worked as a stunt driver for the hovercraft chase at the beginning of the James Bond film Die Another Day.
As a student, John worked at Pindair, the manufacturers of the Skima 12 hovercraft restored by Salvage Squad. He tried his hand at everything – fitting skirts, installing engines, painting, design work and driving.
John went on to manufacture diesel-engined hovercraft at his own company, Griffon Hovercraft Ltd, which produces everything from 4-seat to 80-seat vessels. The large craft are used worldwide, mainly by coastguards and for military purposes.
Hovercraft can accomplish virtually any task performed by a fast boat but, being amphibious, they can go where no boat can venture: shallow water, land, mud, sand, ice, weed, debris swamp, rocks and rapids.
John was delighted to be involved in the restoration of the historic Skima 12 – the craft he had served his apprenticeship on. He hadn't driven a Skima 12 for 20 years but was completely at home behind the wheel at the finale of Salvage Squad.
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