Channel pressure control means for air cushion supported craft

Claim 1

A CRAFT HAVING A BOW AND STERN AND ADAPTED TO BE PROPELLED OVER SURFACES AT VARYING HEIGHTS ABOVE SAID SURFACES, SAID CRAFT COMPRISING THREE LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING SPACED APART HULLS, MEANS CONNECTING SAID HULLS TOGETHER, SAID HULLS AND SAID MEANS CONNECTING SAID HULLS TOGETHER DEFINING TWO LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING, SIDE-BYSIDE CHANNELS, EACH OF SAID CHANNELS HAVING AN OPEN UNDERSIDE, PROPELLING MEANS FOR DRAWING AIR INTO SAID CHANNELS ADJACENT SAID BOW OF SAID CRAFT AND FOR PROPELLING AIR THROUGH SAID CHANNELS TOWARDS SAID STERN OF SAID CRAFT, BOW PLATE MEANS POSITIONED ACROSS SAID CHANNELS ADJACENT SAID BOW OF SAID CRAFT, PIVOTALLY SUPPORTED STERN PLATES RESPECTIVELY POSITIONED ACROSS EACH OF SAID CHANNELS ADJACENT SAID STERN OF SAID CRAFT, SAID STERN PLATES BEING MOVABLE TO OPEN AND CLOSE SAID CHANNELS ADJACENT SAID STERN OF SAID CRAFT, AND A STERN PLATE CONTROL MEMBER FOR ACTUATING SAID STERN PLATES AND PIVOTED ABOUT AN AXIS FOR MOVEMENT IN THE FORE AND AFT DIRECTION OF THE CRAFT AND INCLUDING MEANS ROTATABLE ABOUT AN AXIS TRANSVERSE TO SAID FIRST AXIS, FIRST MEANS CONNECTING SAID STERN PLATES WITH SAID CONTROL MEMBER WHEREBY MOVEMENT OF SAID CONTROL MEMBER IN SAID DIRECTION MOVES SAID STERN PLATES IN UNISON, AND SECOND MEANS CONNECTING SAID LAST NAMED MEANS TO SAID ROTATABLE MEANS WHEREBY ROTATION OF SAID ROTATABLE MEANS MOVES SAID STERN PLATES DIFFERENTIALLY TO THEREBY PERMIT AIR PRESSURE IN THE RESPECTIVE CHANNELS TO BE VARIED, THE DISPLACEMENT OF SAID CRAFT BEING SUCH THAT AT REST SAID CRAFT FLOATS IN WATER WITH SAID HULLS ONLY PARTLY SUBMERGED AND SAID CHANNELS ONLY PARTLY FILLED WITH WATER, AIR OCCUPYING THE REMAINDER OF SAID CHANNELS FROM THE BOW TO THE STERN THEREOF.