This paper explores the possibility of realizing a hollow-core optical fiber, whose cladding is composed of cylindrical alternating layers of air and high-index material with supporting structure. The optical properties and the design criteria of the proposed fiber are evaluated by the compact two-dimensional (2D) finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. In particular, the influence of the number and width of supporting strips on the leakage loss of the fiber is investigated. Furthermore, the mechanical performances of the fiber are estimated by finite-element method, confirming that hollow-core fibers with a reasonable size and number of supporting strips are reliable.