Surf-class lifeboat

RNLB Thomas Kirk Wright (ON 811) in Poole Lifeboat Museum
Class overview
NameSurf-class
Builders
Operators Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Cost£3,000-£3,800
Built1936–1941
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. Nine were built between 1936 and 1941, and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) between 1936 and 1965.

History

Designed by RNLI Naval Architect James Rennie 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 traditional 'Pulling and Sailing' (P&S) lifeboats, ones with sails and oars, and plug gaps in motor lifeboat cover. The boats however, were only really suitable for inshore work in moderate conditions and only had long service lives at two stations.

Description

The first two boats were 32 ft (9.8 m) long, with a 9 ft (2.7 m) beam. No shelter was provided on the deck, as this was not considered to be a problem for the kind of services that they were intended for. On service, with crew and gear on board, the boat weighed just 4+1⁄4 tons. Each boat was divided into five water-tight compartments, with approximately ninety air-cases.[1]

Power was provided by two 12-hp 2-cylinder Weyburn F2 horizontal petrol engines, each being water-tight, and capable of operating submerged, although they were also housed in a water-tight engine room.

The first two boats differed in their method of propulsion, the first being fitted with regular twin-screw propellers, whilst the second employed a water-jet propulsion method. The 'Hotchkiss Internal Cones' consisted of a pair of impellers in a conical case, driven by each engine, and working like a centrifugal pump, drawing in water at one end, and forcing it out under pressure at the other. This is a development of the method of hydraulic propulsion used in the early steam-powered life-boats built in 1888. While this was a benefit in shallow waters, the cone powered boat was approximately 1 knot (2 km/h; 1 mph) slower than the screw version.[1][2]

The first two boats served for less than ten years, before being sold to the Dutch Lifeboat Service KNZHRM in June 1946.

Construction of the next seven boats in the class began in 1938, three years after the first two, all fitted with a shelter ahead of the (tiller) steering position, and built with a slightly wider beam of 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m). Each continued to employ the twin Weyburn F2 engines, and all but one featured Hotchkiss Internal Cone propulsion. Kate Greatorex (ON 816) was fitted with Gill water jets.[2]

Service

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 this time, the lifeboat was launched on service only eleven times, but rescued 19 lives. Newburgh lifeboat station was closed when the boat was withdrawn. Norman Nasmyth (ON 836) remained in the Relief fleet until 1966.[3]

Fleet

ON[a] Name Built In service[3] Station Comments[2]
779 Rosabella 1935 1936–1945 Ilfracombe [Note 1]
Sold to the Dutch Lifeboat Service KNZHRM, June 1946. See below:–
780 Royal Silver Jubilee 1910-1935 1935 1936–1945 Wells [Note 2]
Sold to the Dutch Lifeboat Service KNZHRM, June 1946. See below:–
810 Augustus and Laura 1938 1938–1950 Newbiggin [Note 3] Sold 1950.
Renamed Betsy Lyn. Fishing boat, destroyed at Ouseburn Quay, Newcastle upon Tyne, November 1995.
811 Thomas Kirk Wright 1938 1939–1962 Poole [Note 4] Sold 1963.
On display at the Poole Lifeboat Museum in Poole, Dorset.
816 Kate Greatorex 1939 1939–1951 Minehead [Note 5] Sold March 1952.
Stored for restoration ay Yonne (river), Migennes, France, December 2024.
817 Laurence Arden, Stockport 1939 1939–1949 Barmouth [Note 6] Sold December 1951.
Renamed The Lady Godiva, later Godiva II. Last reported at Saundersfoot, 1970s.
1949–1951 Relief fleet
835 The Gordon Warren 1939 1939–1949 Rhyl [Note 7] Sold January 1952.
Renamed Welsh Maid (CO 332). Fishing boat with wheelhouse fitted, at Conwy, April 2024.
1949–1951 Relief fleet
836 Norman Nasmyth 1940 1940–1950 Montrose No.2 [Note 8] Sold 1966.
Renamed Montrose, last reported at Lamlash, Isle of Arran, June 1986.
1950–1966 Reserve fleet
837 John Ryburn 1941 1941–1965 Newburgh [Note 9]
Capsized on service, with two crew lost, 26 January 1942. Sold 1966, now believed to have been broken up, 2010.
  1. ^ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.

Dutch Lifeboat Service KNZHRM

RNLI ON[a] Name Built In service[3] Station Comments[3]
779 Rosabella 1935 1946–1955 Terschelling Now restored, at Haarlem, NL, July 2024.
780 Rosilee 1935 1946–1959 Vlieland Sold 1959.
  1. ^ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ 32 ft (9.8 m) x 9 ft (2.7 m) Surf-class lifeboat, legacy of Mr J. Hogg, built by J. Samuel White of Cowes, driven by std. propellers, costing £3,265.
  2. ^ 32 ft (9.8 m) x 9 ft (2.7 m) Surf-class lifeboat, gift of Mrs E. W. Montford, JP, built by Groves and Guttridge of Cowes, costing £2,919.
  3. ^ 32 ft (9.8 m) x 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) Surf-class lifeboat, gift of Miss E. A. Northey, built by Groves and Guttridge of Cowes, costing £3,356.
  4. ^ 32 ft (9.8 m) x 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) Surf-class lifeboat, legacy of Mr T. Kirk Wright, built by Groves and Guttridge of Cowes, costing £3,337.
  5. ^ 32 ft (9.8 m) x 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) Surf-class lifeboat, legacy of Mrs K. Greatorex, built by Groves and Guttridge of Cowes, costing £3,478.
  6. ^ 32 ft (9.8 m) x 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) Surf-class lifeboat, legacy of Mrs M. A. Ardern, built by Groves and Guttridge of Cowes, costing £3,492.
  7. ^ 32 ft (9.8 m) x 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) Surf-class lifeboat, legacy of Mr H. B. G. Warren, built by J. Samuel White of Cowes, costing £3,702.
  8. ^ 32 ft (9.8 m) x 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) Surf-class lifeboat, legacy of Mr N. J. Nasmyth, built by Alexander Robertson & Sons of Sandbank, Argyll, costing £3,690.
  9. ^ 32 ft (9.8 m) x 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) Surf-class lifeboat, legacy of Mr W. McCunn, built by Alexander Robertson & Sons of Sandbank, Argyll, costing £3,791.

References

  1. ^ a b "Surf Motor Life-Boats. An Experimental Type". The Lifeboat. XXX (328): 165. December 1936. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  2. ^ a b c Morris, Jeff (2008). List of British Lifeboats Part 3 (Third ed.). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. p. 35.
  3. ^ a b c d Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2026). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2026. Lifeboats Enthusiasts Society. pp. 30–35.
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