The D-class (EA16) lifeboat is a class of

inflatable boat An inflatable boat is a lightweight boat constructed with its sides and bow made of flexible tubes containing pressurised gas. For smaller boats, the floor and hull is often flexible, while for boats longer than , the floor typically consist ...

operated since 1987 by the

Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It i ...

of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. It has been replaced operationally by the D-class (IB1), but many are still used as part of the relief fleet, as boarding boats for the larger classes of lifeboat and by the RNLI Flood Rescue Team. The type designator ''EA16'' stands for ''Evans Avon 16''.

Utilization

For more than 40 years the D-class served as the workhorse of the RNLI Inshore

Lifeboat Lifeboat may refer to: Rescue vessels * Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape * Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues * Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen ...

(ILB) fleet. Significantly smaller in comparison to the rest of the inshore fleet, the D-class is also one of the few RNLI types not to feature a rigid hull. The main aspect of the boat would be both its size and weight - only . The D-class was specifically designed as a light and highly manoeuvrable rapid response craft.

Design and construction

The D-class lifeboat consists of two

sponson Sponsons are projections extending from the sides of land vehicles, aircraft or watercraft to provide protection, stability, storage locations, mounting points for weapons or other devices, or equipment housing. Watercraft On watercraft, a spon ...

s, together housing seven inflatable segments intersected by baffles. The main construction fabric is

Hypalon Hypalon is a chlorosulfonated polyethylene (CSPE) synthetic rubber (CSM) noted for its resistance to chemicals, temperature extremes, and ultraviolet light. It was a product of DuPont Performance Elastomers, a subsidiary of DuPont. Hypalon as it i ...

-coated

Nylon Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers composed of polyamides ( repeating units linked by amide links).The polyamides may be aliphatic or semi-aromatic. Nylon is a silk-like thermoplastic, generally made from petro ...

which provides a durable, non-tear surface. This was one of the smaller classes of lifeboat operated by the RNLI, and they were a common sight at lifeboat stations around the coast. Unlike other members of the ILB fleet, the D-class does not have a rigid hull; all others, with the exception of the Arancia, hovercraft, and ALB Tenders, are

Rigid Inflatable Boat A rigid inflatable boat (RIB), also rigid-hull inflatable boat or rigid-hulled inflatable boat (RHIB), is a lightweight but high-performance and high-capacity boat constructed with a rigid hull bottom joined to side-forming air tubes that are ...

s (RIBs). The D-class normally had a crew of three or four and was primarily used for surfer/swimmer incidents as well as assisting in cliff incidents where the casualty was near the water. The very nature of its work required a swift response,

Fleet

References

External links

RNLI FleetRNLI Lifeboats
{{DEFAULTSORT:D-class lifeboat Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboats Inflatable boats