Four (or more ) Centrifugal fans similar to those on air doors mounted next to each other. Are there any obvoious reasons why this configuration wouldnt work?

I thought it might be better than using a prop, because the fan in directly above the nozzle, so the air doesnt need to be turned 45 degrees and the air has a shorter way to travel, If Im not mistaken, centrifugal fans are more efficient at moving large amounts of air.
I guess I also might be safer on a full size craft because of the smaller fan, and lower inertia of the fan blades?

I may be wrong, but I always thought centrifugal fans are better at providing pressurized air rather than high volume. Your design is cool but I fear that the fans would have a hard time moving enough air to keep the cushion area pressurized. Good luck if you try it...

Suspect that it would be rather heavy plus you lose the flexibility that a skirt provides, and how would you seal the corners such that the plenum is maintained whilst still providing a route for the air to enter the fan (or are you assuming that the curtain jets are sufficient to provide a cushion on their own - I would suggest not)?

@ raw89 ; Thanks . Your're probably right that it's pressure, not volume.

@jpcwebb: thanks, i dunno how heavy it would be. About the breaks in the curtain in the corners, keep in mind this is a "cutout" drawing.

the fans would slightly overlap in the corners, air would come in through an intake on top of the fan.

A few thoughts based on nothing more than my intuition:

You'll struggle to maintain an even jet distribution along the length of each fan section. Centrifugal fans are typically very shallow, these are deep cylinders. I could see the middle of each section struggling to get any airflow from the intakes at the ends. You might end up with a strong jet right at the intakes and basically nothing further along. This could be remedied by having multiple smaller sections with open intakes in between (pretty much what you've shown in the middle there). Then you have to think about maintaining the jet in between those sections. Could probably be done with a shaped channel to bridge the gap.

Stabilisation jet? My experience has been that these peripheral jet machines don't work very well without one. Easy to tap off some propwash if you have a central motor/fan, how are you going to do it here?

I can see those long cylindrical fans being a nightmare to get running smoothly. You need to maintain a tight clearance between the blades and the inside of the casing along the entire length. I can just see the whole thing vibrating and grinding itself to pieces. Perhaps with a bearing at each end and a very stiff shaft/case it might work. Here is an example of the sort of thing that happens with an unsupported spinning cylinder.

Still since nobody has tried this we're all just speculating here. Would like to see an attempt even if it's unsuccessful.

Originally Posted by FiftySlicks

Then you have to think about maintaining the jet in between those sections. Could probably be done with a shaped channel to bridge the gap.

that's what I was thinking. Do you think this would require more or less power than a normal skirtless(peripheral jet) hovercraft?