Saving Lives at Sea

The Boat-B Class Atlantic 85

Station Contacts

Phone:  0719841713

Email:

crew@bundoranlifeboat.com

Web:

www.bundoranlifeboat.com

Emergency: 999 or 112

B - 834 "William Henry Liddington"

The Atlantic 85 class Lifeboat

 The RNLI has two boats in this class the 75 and 85. The name atlantic comes from Atlantic College in Wales where the rigid inflatable was first developed. The '75' and '85' are derived from a length of nearly 7.5m and 8.5m respectively.

Fast, maneuverable and very reliable, the B class operates in rough weather conditions, even at night. Introduced in 2005 the Atlantic 85 is 13% larger than the 75. It has a fourth crew seat with deck space for a casualty on a stretcher and a top speed of 35 knots.

The B class lifeboat can be launched from a drive-on drive-off (DoDo) carriage, by shore mounted crane (davit) or from a floating boathouse. Bundoran's Atlantic is launched with a Talus MB-4H tractor and DoDo trailer.

  The Atlantic 85 is operational in daylight up to force 7 and at night to force 6. Her design allows room for four crew members, more survivors and more kit than the 75.

She is powered by two 115hp Yamaha engines and has a stronger hull and greater top speed. The added radar allows her crew to operate more effectively in poor visibility and to locate stricken vessels faster.

A manually operated righting system combined with two 115hp 4-stroke inversion proofed engines keep her operational even after a capsize.

The Atlantic 85 carries a full suite of communication and electronic navigation aids, including VHF radio, VHF DF, intercom, DGPS and electronic chart, radar and hand held VHF, as well as searchlight, night vision equipment and illuminating paraflares for night time operations.

 Atlantic 85  

Date Introduced:          2005

Length:                          8.44m

Beam/Width:                 2.85m

Draught/Depth              0.53m

Displacement:               1.8 tonnes

Launch Type:                Carriage, Davit or Floating Boathouse

Fuel Capacity:               210 litres

Crew:                              4

Max Speed:                   35 knots

Range/Endurance:         2.5 hrs

Construction:                 Hull-carbon fibre and foam core laminate. Inflatable collar-hypalon coated nylon

Engines:                         2 x Yamaha 4 - stroke at 115hp each.

Survivor capacity:         20

Bundoran's Atlantic 75  B711 'Helene' (1995 - 2009)

Development History

Developed jointly with the RNLI, the Talus MB-4H is the first tractor to be specifically designed for the task of launching inflatable lifeboats. Previous lifeboat tractors had been converted from commercial designs.

It was necessary to design a special tractor because commercial designs were becoming more difficult and costly to adapt and could not meet the RNLI requirements, such as ground clearance, steering ability and full waterproofing.

Development took place at Knighton, at the Company Test facility. The prototype was then tested at lifeboat stations with the most arduous launching conditions. Trials were completed and the first tractor went on station at New Brighton in November 1990.