| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Ramsgate-class |
| Builders | |
| Operators |
|
| Preceded by | Norfolk and Suffolk-class |
| Succeeded by | 46ft 9in Watson-class |
| Cost | £8,500 |
| Built | 1925–1928 |
| In service | 1925–1955 |
| Completed | 3 |
| Retired | 3 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement | 21–23 tons |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 13 ft (4.0 m) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 8 knots (9.2 mph) |
| Crew | 9 |
The Ramsgate-class motor lifeboat was a special design produced by the RNLI for three stations covering the Thames estuary and required to operate in shallow waters.
Designed at a time when the RNLI was happy to build special boats for the particular needs of individual stations, the Ramsgate-class (named after the first station to operate one) was essentially an amalgam of Norfolk and Suffolk and Watson design principles intended for the shallow waters of the Thames estuary. The first boat, RNLB Prudential (ON 697), was 48 feet (15 m) long and single engined. The other two were 6 inches (15 cm) longer and twin engined. All three had long careers at their respective stations but when they were replaced between 1953 and 1955, it was with standard 46ft 9in Watson boats.
The first Ramsgate was an open design with no cockpits and low end boxes. Powered by a single 80 bhp Weyburn built DE6 6-cylinder petrol engine driving a single screw, the boat retained an auxiliary sailing rig as well as six oars. The other two boats were substantially redesigned, being six inches (15 cm) longer and powered by two 40 bhp Weyburn built CE4 4-cylinder petrol engines driving twin screws. The sailing rig was much reduced and the boats had a shelter ahead of the cockpit covering the engine controls. Just ahead of this was a funnel for engine exhaust.
| ON [lower-alpha 1] | Name | Built | Builder | In service [1] | Stations | Comments [1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 697 | Prudential | 1925 | S. E. Saunders | 1925–1953 | Ramsgate | Sold November 1953. Reported in May 2022 to be at Ipswich Haven Marina carrying the name Trimilia. [2] |
| 704 | Greater London (Civil Service No.3) | 1928 | J. Samuel White | 1928–1941 | Southend-on-Sea | Sold September 1957 to ADES Uruguay and renamed ADES 1 Francisco Alvarez. [3] By December 2022 was in storage at Carmelo, Uruguay. |
| 1941–1945 | Reserve fleet | |||||
| 1945–1955 | Southend-on-Sea | |||||
| 1955–1957 | Reserve fleet | |||||
| 705 | E.M.E.D. | 1928 | J. Samuel White | 1928–1953 | Walton and Frinton | Sold January 1956. Renamed Capitán Christiansen when in service at Valparaiso, Chile. By April 2019 was on display near Muelle Barón, Valparaiso. [4] |
| 1953–1955 | Reserve fleet |
RNLB Thomas McCunn is a 45ft 6in Watson-class lifeboat stationed at Longhope in Orkney, Scotland, from January 1933 until April 1962. During which time she was launched on service 101 times and saved 308 lives. After Thomas McCunn left Longhope she was placed into the reserve fleet for ten years before being sold and used as a pleasure boat. In 2000 she was bought by Longhope Lifeboat Museum. The lifeboat is now at the centre of a display in the old slipway at Brims and is still launched on special occasions.
The Tyne-class lifeboat was a class of lifeboat that served as a part of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution fleet until 2019. They were named after the River Tyne in North East England.
Since its inception, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has provided lifeboats to lifeboat stations in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The Oakley-class lifeboat refers to two types of self-righting lifeboat operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) around the coast of the United Kingdom and Ireland between 1958 and 1993. The 37-foot (11.3 m) Oakley was designed for carriage launching, while the larger 48-foot-6-inch (14.8 m) version was designed for slipway launching or to lie afloat. During their service they saved a combined total of 1,456 lives in 3,734 rescue launches.
The Waveney-class lifeboat was the first class of lifeboats operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) capable of operating at speeds in excess of 10 knots (12 mph). Based on an American design, 22 saw operational service between 1964 and 1999 at the RNLI's stations around the coast of the United Kingdom and Ireland. After being superseded by faster boats in the 1990s, many were sold for further use with lifeboat services abroad, notably in Australia and New Zealand.
The Barnett-class lifeboat consists of three types of non self-righting displacement hull lifeboats operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) from its stations around the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland between 1923 and 1987.
The Clyde-class lifeboat was operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) from two of its stations in the United Kingdom, Kirkwall and Clovelly. Only three vessels were built for the RNLI, however a fourth vessel was built in the Netherlands to the same lines as 70-001 and 70-003 as a pilot boat for Trinity House.
The Liverpool-class motorised lifeboat was a non-self-righting boat operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) from its stations around the coast of the United Kingdom and Ireland. The boats were designed for carriage launching and were developed from the Liverpool-Class Pulling and Sailing type of lifeboats - there were two types built, single and twin engined.
Norfolk and Suffolk-class lifeboats were lifeboats operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) from stations around the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland. They were able to operate further from shore and around the sandbanks common off East Anglia.
RNLB Abdy Beauclerk was a 41ft 'Aldeburgh' Type Beach Motor which was stationed in the town of Aldeburgh in the English county of Suffolk. She was on the No: 1 station at Aldeburgh from 1931 until she was sold out of the RNLI fleet in 1959, a total of 28 years service.
The term Watson-class lifeboat refers to several wooden lifeboat classes operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) around the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland between 1888 and 1991. The boats had hulls that conformed to the basic design laid down by RNLI naval architect George Lennox Watson.
The 47 ft Watson-class was a class of non self-righting displacement hull lifeboat built from 1955 to 1963 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution between 1956 and 1991.
The 42ft Watson-class was a class of non self-righting displacement hull lifeboat built between 1954 and 1962 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) around the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland between 1954 and 1987.
The 46 ft 9in Watson-class lifeboat was a non self-righting displacement hull lifeboat built between 1947 and 1956 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution between 1947 and 1989.
The Surf-class was a light non self-righting displacement hull motor lifeboat built between 1935 and 1940 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) between 1936 and 1965.
The 46 ft Watson-class was a non self-righting displacement hull lifeboat built between 1935 and 1946 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution between 1935 and 1981.
The 41 ft Watson-class was a non self-righting displacement hull lifeboat built between 1931 and 1952 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution between 1931 and 1981.
The 45ft 6in Watson-class was a non self-righting displacement hull lifeboat built between 1926 and 1933 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution between 1926 and 1972.
The 35ft 6in Self-righting motor-class was a 10.8 m displacement hull lifeboat built in single engine form between 1929 and 1940 and in twin-engined form between 1947 and 1950. The boats were operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution between 1929 and 1965.
The 45 ft Watson-class was a non self-righting displacement hull lifeboat built between 1919 and 1925 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution between 1919 and 1956.
