MERSEY CLASS EX LIFEBOAT
BUILT: 1987 PRICE: £75,000
If you’re going to be a bear, be a grizzly! It doesn’t get much more ‘Offshore Bruiser’ than an actual lifeboat, and that’s exactly what this is, a decommissioned Mersey Class. The RNLI introduced the Mersey Class in 1986. The concept followed the service’s desire for boats able to go faster than the 8 knots of vessels used in the 1960s and 1970s. The answer was the Tyne Class launched in 1982 and capable of 17 knots, however at 26 tonnes it was too heavy for beach launching from a carriage. The aluminium-built Mersey was the answer. It became a mainstay of the RNLI until the Shannon
Class was launched in 2014.
Functional best describes the interior of the Mersey Class. Light on high gloss cherry and leather, but heavy on industrial looking navigation equipment, it’s a place of serious business, that of saving lives. There are two helm seats forward and a navigation station further back plus seats for a further two crew members and a bench seat aft. On the lower deck, a survivor compartment can carry 43 people,
INTERIOR
but more than 21 prevents self-righting should the boat be capsized!
The decks are a sea of solid grey decking set off by the bright orange superstructure. At the back of the wheelhouse on the aft deck, a second helm station is more exposed but gives greater visibility for times when the helmsman needed all the help he could get to dodge into perilous
EXTERIOR
situations and get back out again with survivors in sometimes horrific conditions.
Engines are a pair of Caterpillar 3208T diesel engines producing 280hp each at 2,800rpm. They gave this 14-tonne rescue boat a top speed of 17 knots.
PERFORMANCE
We all hope we’ll never have to find out how good a lifeboat is at sea, but suffice to say, it was a design priority! Propellers are fully protected from damage when launching or in shallow water by partial tunnels and two bilge keels.
SEAKEEPING
LOA: 38ft 1in (11.6m) Beam: 13ft 1in (4.0m) Draught: 3ft 3in (1.0m) Displacement: 14 tonnes Fuel capacity: 1,110 litres Engines: Twin Caterpillar 3208T 280hp diesel
Richardsons Yacht Services Ltd www.richardsonsyacht.co.uk