By Sara Ballenger

When Los Altos High School senior Beth Wildanger thought about her senior project for her English class, one word sprung to mind - hovercraft.

Wildanger, who hopes to become a mechanical engineer, became inspired last summer while attending a three-week engineering camp at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terra Haute, Ind.

While there, Wildanger went on a field trip to a hovercraft factory.

“I saw the factory, and I was like, ‘Wow, I want to build a hovercraft,’” Wildanger said. “So I decided to do that for my senior project so that I could actually build it.”

First, Wildanger needed to have her project approved by her English teacher, Roma Hammel.

“We really want to give students an opportunity to engage in hands-on learning projects, not part of the regular curriculum,” Hammel said about the senior project requirement.

As for Wildanger’s hovercraft, “I think it’s an amazing project. I am impressed by the dedication and enthusiasm she’s had,” Hammel said.

Once her project was approved, Wildanger set to design her hovercraft.

“There are all sorts of really interesting design considerations to think about when you build a hovercraft,” Wildanger said. “Like two engines, one for lift and one for thrust. Or you can do one engine and split the air so one-third goes to lift and two-thirds to thrust,” she said.

Wildanger read books and Web sites on hovercraft design. She also enlisted the help of her father, Ward, owner of Eurodesign, a state-of-the-art woodshop in Santa Clara.

“She’s one of the most clever girls when it comes to engineering,” he said. “We tried to talk her out of it. Hovercrafts aren’t very practical in California.” Ward was happy to help his daughter with her project, however, and gave her supplies and let her use tools from his shop.

“She used a computerized saw and thin plywood,” he said. The base of the hovercraft is made out of wood .

One of the main problems Wildanger faced was how to design her hovercraft so that it could carry a passenger, since hovercrafts are very sensitive to weight.

“You have to use physics. When it’s floating, it’s pushing air down but it needs to float level,” Wildanger said. “If there is a person riding on it, it has to be balanced by something on the other side.”

Wildanger had to figure out the weight requirements for her hovercraft to determine the size of engine she would need.

“It’s a 5 1/2-horsepower lawn mower engine,”she said. “It holds half a gallon of gas.”

Once the design was in place, Wildanger set to build her hovercraft.

“One of my dad’s friends has an air-conditioning company. He cut the metal for the duct that surrounds the fan,” Wildanger said. “I cut a lot of things on my own, too, and learned how to use grommets.”

Wildanger started building her hovercraft in January, working on it about once a week and during breaks. She finished in the middle of April.

“The first time I tried it out I didn’t know if it would work or not, ” Wildanger said. “It doesn’t hover very much, it doesn’t go very fast, but it works.”

Wildanger will present it to her English class on June 4. “It should be really awesome,” Hammel said.

Wildanger hopes to study mechanical engineering in college.