Appledore RNLI to receive revolutionary new Tamar class all-weather lifeboat

Appledore RNLI can confirm today (Thursday 30 April) that the station is to receive a new state-of-the-art Tamar class all-weather lifeboat. The lifeboat, which is due to arrive next year, will replace the existing Tyne class lifeboat George Gibson that has been at Appledore since 1988.

The Tamar is of the very latest in lifeboat design. She has a top speed of 25 knots giving a vastly improved response time on that of the existing lifeboat at Appledore, and boasts new safety features including an advanced seat design to reduce stress on the backs of the volunteer crew members when they are at sea. New onboard computer controls mean remote management of many of the lifeboats functions and better task sharing amongst the crew.

Wendy Dale, RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager at Appledore, says: ‘This new £2.7 million lifeboat represents a huge investment in the life saving work of the RNLI in the area. 2008 was the busiest year ever for the Appledore RNLI and 2009 looks like following suit. Appledore is also the busiest lifeboat station in the Bristol Channel and the new Tamar will help the volunteer crews significantly. It is a safer, faster, better equipped boat and it can reach the casualty more quickly than our current Tyne.

‘However apart from additional fundraising to help with the costs of the new boat, the station will need to undertake much additional training to enable the crew to become proficient with the new lifeboat as quickly as possible’.

Coxswain Martin Cox and Mechanic Keith Wilson will make frequent visits to the new Tamar whilst it is being built to enable them to understand all aspects of the new lifeboat, even before it arrives on station.

The Appledore Tamar will be the fifth one to go on station in the south west. Two are already operational in Padstow, Cornwall and Salcombe, Devon, with a third arriving on station in St Helier, Channel Islands this spring and at Sennen Cove, Cornwall at the end of the year.

Key Facts about the Tamar class all weather lifeboat

The Tamar class lifeboat is the RNLI’s latest design and will gradually replace the Tyne class. It is bigger and faster than the Tyne and can be launched from a slipway or lie afloat.

• Length 16m
• Breadth 5m
• Draught 1.35m
• Weight 31.5 tonnes
• Crew 7 (including doctor)
• Material Fibre reinforced plastic
• Endurance 10 hours at 25 knots
• Speed 25 knots
• Power 2 X 1000HP turbo charged diesels
• Propulsion 2 X fixed pitch 5 bladed propellers
• Fuel 4,600 litres/1,000 gallons
• Cost £2.7 million each in 2008/9

The main improvements over the Tyne class are:

• The Tamar has a length of 16 metres, the Tyne 14 metres.
• The Tamar can reach casualties faster – it has a top speed of 25 knots.
• Better equipped: the Tamar class carries a powered ‘Y boat’, which is a larger and more powerful inflatable than the manually propelled ‘X boat’ carried on board a Tyne. The Y-boat is stored behind a transom door that allows immediate deployment whereas the X-boat was stowed below in a deflated state.
• The Tamar has even more safety features: during rough weather, research shows that some accidents could be prevented if crew remain sitting, rather than moving around the lifeboat. The Systems and Information Management System (SIMS) allows the crew to control many of the on-board functions without leaving their seats.
• Improved ergonomics: a faster speed means greater physical loadings on the crew as the lifeboat crashes through waves; the new seat design will significantly reduce the impact of these loadings on the crew.