Cromer RNLB Lester 16-07

Tamar class lifeboats are all-weather lifeboats (ALB's) operated by the RNLI. They have replaced the majority of the older Tyne ALB's. The prototype was built in 2000 and 27 production boats were constructed between 2006 and 2013. The class name comes from the 61 miles (98 km) long River Tamar in south west England which forms most of the border between Devon and Cornwall and flows into the sea at Plymouth Sound, a bay of the the English Channel.

Since 1982 the RNLI had deployed Tyne lifeboats at stations which launched their boats down slipways or needed to operate in shallow waters. The organisation desired to increase the speed and range of their operations so introduced faster Severn and Trent boats starting in 1994 at locations where they could be moored afloat. They then needed to produce a boat with similar capabilities but with protected propellers and other modifications that would allow it to be launched on a slipway.

Although nominally the replacement for the Tyne ALB's, only twenty seven Tamar's have been built compared to forty Tyne's. The remaining Tyne's will be replaced by Shannon boats.

The prototype Tamar was built in 2000 and was used for trials until 2006. It was sold in December 2008 to Kent Police, becoming Princess Alexandra III, the force's permanent maritime vessel operating out of Sheerness. The first production boat, Haydn Miller entered service at Tenby in March 2006. A few of the early boats suffered problems such as fuel leaking under the floor of the engine room around hydraulic lines. These boats were recalled and the problems rectified.

The 27th. and last Tamar class lifeboat, allocated to The Mumbles, was launched on 12th. March 2013 in Devonport Dockyard and after sea trials was handed over to the RNLI on 21st. May 2013.

Ten lifeboat stations keep Tamar's moored afloat, thirteen launch them down slipways, and the remaining four form a Relief Fleet to cover when boats are unavailable for service. Most of the slipway stations required entirely new boathouses and slipways to accommodate the Tamar, but at Cromer and Angle the existing fairly modern boathouses were adapted and at Sennen Cove the capacious old boathouse was able to be modified to take the new boat.

The Tamar has a new design of crew workstation with seats that can move up and down 20 centimetres (7.9 in) as the boat passes through rough seas at high speed, and an onboard computer system called Systems and Information Management System (SIMS) allows complex tasks such as engine and navigation management to be displayed on a single flat LCD screen, six of which are positioned around the vessel, to allow crew to operate all the systems without moving from their seats. The coxswain and helmsman have seat-mounted throttles, trackerball and joystick controls of the rudder. Alternatively the boat may be monitored and controlled by two controls on the bridge, dual throttle controls and joystick on the left, dual throttle, wheel and control-screen on the right. All aspects of the vessel may also be controlled from this position.

The lifeboat is completely water-tight allowing it to self-right with 51 people on board. The boat has the potential to carry a maximum of 120 passengers on board, but without self-righting capability. The survivors space has room for 10 sitting and 8 standing. The survivors space is accessed either through the wheelhouse or the fore deck emergency escape hatch.

Each Tamar carries a daughter Y Class inflatable boat in a recessed chamber in the stern section. Access to the inflatable is by means of lowering the transom, and lifting a section of deck. This allows the tender to be launched and recovered at sea onto a ramp provided by the lowered transom section. There is a provision for a PWC (Personal Water Craft, more commonly known as a jet ski) to be specified instead, should it prove more suitable.

All Tamar Class lifeboats have sea water sourced open loop heat pump systems on board to keep the crew comfortable in high or low temperature conditions.

 

RNLB Lester is the ALB lifeboat stationed at Cromer, Norfolk and is the first Tamar class lifeboat to be stationed on the east coast of England. The lifeboats name, Lester, has been created by using parts of the surnames of Derek Clifton Lethern and William Foster, both of whom have been long term supporters and members of the RNLI. Mr. Lethern left £1.23m to the RNLI when he died in 1992 and asked for a new lifeboat to be bought in memory of him and his friend Mr. Foster.

After her launch the Lester underwent a long period of sea trials. Around 30 Cromer crewmen took part in these trials to familiarise themselves with their new lifeboat. On 8th. October 2007 the lifeboat crew took part in a week of training aboard the new lifeboat at the RNLI Lifeboat college in Poole, Dorset. The lifeboat finally arrived at Cromer on 9th. December 2007 and was recovered, for the first time, up her new slipway in to the boathouse. The vessel was officially operational at 3:55 pm on 6th. January 2008.

Lester was launched on her first service on 14th. January 2008. She attended the car carrier The City of Sunderland which had gone aground in the early hours of the morning on the southern edge of Happisburgh Sands. The car carrier had been on passage from Zeebrugge, Belgium to Tees Port near Middlesbrough. When the Lester arrived at the scene, two tugs from Felixstowe, Suffolk were attempting to tow the vessel off the sands. Assisting with the operation the crew of the lifeboat kept a watchful eye on the situation and stood by while the vessel carried out essential checks to her steering and propulsion systems once she was re-floated. The Lifeboat finally left the scene at 23:50 and made her way back to the pier boathouse for recovery.

Lester is seen in the yacht marina at Lowestoft, Suffolk.

 

Name: Lester

Station: Cromer, Norfolk

Class: Tamar

Number: 16-07

Official Number: 1287

MMSI: 235030385

Call Sign: MKHW9

Builders:

Hull: Green Marine, Lymington, Hampshire

Fitting out: DML, Devonport, Plymouth

Construction:

Hull: Fibre-reinforced composite (FRC)

Deck and superstructure: 25 mm foam-cored FRC sandwich.

Launched: 26th. April 2007

In service: 6th. January 2008 to present

Christened: 8th. September 2008 by The Duke of Kent.

Cost: £2.6m

Displacement: 31.5 tons

Length: 16.3 m (53 ft. 4 in.)

Beam: 5.3 m (17 ft. 4 in.)

Draught: 1.4 m (4 ft. 7 in.)

Engine: 2 x Caterpillar C18 diesels

Engine output: 2 x 1,015 hp (757 kW)

Propellers: 2 x fixed pitch 5-blade

Fuel capacity: 4,600 lt. (1,000 gals)

Speed: 25 knots (29 mph/ 46 km/h)

Range: 250 nautical miles (286 miles/460 km)

Endurance: 10 hours at 25 knots

Survivors: 118 (self-righting up to 44)

Crew: 7

 

Class: Y class inflatable

Official Number: Y-207

Length: 3 m (9 ft. 9 in.)

Propulsion: 1 × Mariner outboard engine

Outboard output: 15 hp (11 kW)

Speed: 25 knots (29 mph/ 46 km/h)

Range: Within visual range of ALB

Crew: 2

 

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