OVER 20,000 people have helped save the giant Hovercraft that was underthreat at a Hampshire museum.

When volunteers at Lee-on-the-Solent's Hovercraft Museum were told the beloved SRN4 craft stored there would have to be moved or destroyed, they launched a petition to protect them.

But little did they know the extent of public affection for the three tonne vessels - the petition reached just short of 20,000 signatures in under two weeks.

With support from Princess Anne, Jeremy Clarkson, and Sir Ranulph Fiennes, trustees at the museum have been able to convince the Homes and Communities Agency, which has earmarked the land the historic craft sit on for development, that they are worth saving.

Trustee Ben Avery today said: "It's looking positive. It looks like we will be saving one of the hovercraft with an initial three year project.

"We will be launching a GoFundMe appeal to stabilise the craft before opening them to the public. We've got a couple of weeks til we sign the lease, then up to three years to prove that we can actually stabilise them."

Recognising the public's help in supporting the campaign, the 28-year-old boat master, said: "It's not just local support - we've had support from America, Australia and New Zealand. It's really really encouraging."

As well as an initial campaign to raise £20,000, the museum will also be looking for donations and physical help with the restoration project.

Mr Avery, said: "We are looking for engineers, painters, people who are good with metal work or just to simply clean and move stuff around. We'd like to double the number of volunteers we have at the moment."

The Princess Anne will be surveyed to find out the extent of the damage, making the roof watertight a priority.

He added: "Then we'll have to get the decks sorted, put the propellers back on and repaint it in its original Seaspeed colours. It's very good timing.

The Princess Margaret is in an awful condition but we've caught the Princess Anne just in time."

And once the Princess Anne is fit for visitors, the possibilities are endless.

Mr Avery said: "We've already had an enquiry about hosting a wedding reception there."

An HCA spokesperson said:  “Our aim is to develop the land to create much needed homes and jobs, and regenerate the local area; however we take our responsibility to national heritage seriously.

"We’re talking to the Hovercraft Museum Trust to find a solution for the hovercraft and have had a positive meeting to discuss details of their proposal to preserve ‘The Princess Anne’. Discussions are progressing well and we hope to give more information soon.”