Class overview
NameSurf-class
Builders
Operators Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Cost£3,000-£3,800
Built1935–1941
In service1936–1965
Completed9
Retired9
General characteristics
Displacement4-5 tons
Length32 ft (9.8 m)
Beam9 ft (2.74 m)-9 ft 3 in (2.82 m)
Propulsion2 x 12 bhp Weyburn F2 2-cyl. petrol
Speed6.5–7.5 knots (7.5–8.5 mph; 12–14 km/h)
Range~40 nautical miles (45 mi; 75 km)

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.

History

Designed by RNLI Naval Architect James Barnett, the Surf-class was the smallest and lightest offshore motor lifeboat produced by the Institution. Intended for stations where launching heavier boats would be difficult, the Surf-class enabled the RNLI to replace pulling and sailing lifeboats and plug gaps in motor lifeboat cover. The boats however, were only really suitable for inshore work in moderate conditions and they only had long service lives at two stations.

Description

The first two boats were completely open with no shelter, not considered to be a problem for the kind of services that they were intended for. The boats were powered by two 2-cylinder Weyburn F2 horizontal petrol engines and whereas the first boat had twin screws, the second was propelled by Hotchkiss cones, a kind of water impeller. While this was a benefit in shallow waters, the cone powered boat was around 1 knot (2 km/h; 1 mph) slower than the screw version.

The first two boats served for less than ten years before being sold off. The second batch appeared in 1938 and had 3 inches (7.5 cm) more beam and were fitted with a shelter ahead of the (tiller) steering position. All but one featured Hotchkiss cone propulsion, RNLB Kate Greatore (ON 816) was fitted with Gill water jets. These boats served for 10 to 12 years at most of their stations before being replaced by standard carriage launched boats, but at two locations, Poole and Newburgh, Surf-class boats continued into the sixties. RNLB John Ryburn (ON 837) was withdrawn from service at Newburgh at the end of September 1965 after more than twenty four years on station during which it launched on service only eleven times. With its withdrawal, the Newburgh station was closed.

Fleet

ON[lower-alpha 1] Name Built Builder In service Principal Station Comments[1]
779 Rosabella 1935 J. Samuel White 1936–1945 Ilfracombe Sold in June 1946 to the Dutch lifeboat service. By June 2012 it was restored at Aalsmeer, Netherlands.
780 Royal Silver Jubilee 1910-1935 1935 Groves & Guttridge 1936–1945 Wells Sold in June 1946 to the Dutch lifeboat service June 1946 but sold again 1959.
810 Augustus and Laura 1938 Groves & Guttridge 1938–1950 Newbiggin Sold October 1950. Renamed Betsy Lyn. Destroyed Ouseburn Quay, Newcastle upon Tyne, in 1995.
811 Thomas Kirk Wright 1938 Groves & Guttridge 1939–1962 Poole Sold 1963. On display in the Old Lifeboat House at Poole.
816 Kate Greatorex 1939 Groves & Guttridge 1939–1951 Minehead Sold March 1952. Reported in December 2021 as being stored for restoration on River Yonne at Migennes in France.
817 Laurence Arden, Stockport 1939 Groves & Guttridge 1939–1949 Barmouth Sold December 1951. Last seen in the 1970s at Saundersfoot in Wales.
1949–1951 Reserve fleet
835 The Gordon Warren 1939 J. Samuel White 1939–1949 Rhyl Sold January 1952. Reported in August 2021 to be the fishing boat Welsh Maid (CO332) at Conwy in Wales.
1949–1951 Reserve fleet
836 Norman Nasmyth 1940 Alexander Robertson 1940–1950 Montrose No.2 Sold in 1966. Reported in August 2021 to be the yacht Montrose at Lamlash, Isle of Arran,
1950–1966 Reserve fleet
837 John Ryburn 1941 Alexander Robertson 1941–1965 Newburgh Capsized on service 26 January 1942, two crew lost. Sold in 1966, believed to have been broken up.
  1. ↑ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.

References

  1. ↑ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2023). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2023. Lifeboats Enthusiasts Society.
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