RNLB ''Freddie Cooper'' (ON 1193) is the current all-weather lifeboat on station in the town of

Aldeburgh Aldeburgh ( ) is a coastal town in the English county, county of Suffolk, England. Located to the north of the River Alde. Its estimated population was 2,276 in 2019. It was home to the composer Benjamin Britten and remains the centre of the int ...

''OS Explorer Map 231 – Southwold & Bungay''. . in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county of

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

. The ''Freddie Cooper'' has the operation No: 12-34 and has been on station since 1993. She is a fast carriage lifeboat.

Description

The ''Freddie Cooper'' was laid down in 1992 by Green Marine of

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

. She was delivered to the station in 1993. Her hull has been constructed using a fibre-reinforced composite making her robust, strong and very light. The lifeboat is designed to self-right if capsized but only if her passenger capacity has reached 21 people. If the lifeboat’s survivor compartment is fully ladened with 43 people then the lifeboat is non self-righting. Due to the nature and terrain at the Aldeburgh station, the lifeboat is launched and retrieved using a supplied carriage which gives her quick and safe access across Aldeburgh’s shingle beach. The lifeboat is powered by two Caterpillar marine diesel 3208T engines. Each engine produces 285 horsepower which will push the lifeboat through the water at a top speed of . Her fuel tanks hold 1,110 of diesel which give a range of . The lifeboats propellers are installed in tunnels which protect them when launching or in the shallow waters as is the situation at Aldeburgh.

Service and rescues

''Red House Lugger''

On 29 August 1996, ''Freddie Cooper'' was launched, along with

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...

lifeboat , to assist the yacht ''Red House Lugger'' which had sent out a

mayday Mayday is an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal in voice-procedure radio communications. It is used to signal a life-threatening emergency primarily by aviators and mariners, but in some countries local organiza ...

signal during a storm. The yacht was approximately southeast of Lowestoft.''Lifeboat Gallantry'' RNLI medals and how they were won. Edited by:Barry Cox. Published:Spink, London, 1998. Page 403/404. On arrival, the lifeboats found that the P&O cargo ferry ' was sheltering the yacht. The lifeboats evacuated the yacht's crew, and the ''Lugger'' was towed to

Harwich Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-on- ...

, with the rescue taking around 12 hours in total. On 27 November 1996, coxswain of the ''Freddie Cooper'', Ian Firman, received the RNLI bronze medal for his part in the rescue.

''Rose Bank''

On Sunday 20 May 2000, the ''Freddie Cooper'' was launched to assist the small

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

yacht ''Rose Bank'', which was struggling in gale force 7 winds. During the search, the weather deteriorated sharply and Harwich lifeboat was also launched to assist. Initially reported to be seven miles east of Aldeburgh, the ''Rose Bank'' had drifted to 20 miles east of Aldeburgh by the time she was located. The wind had escalated to gale force 11, a violent storm, and waves were up to high. All four ''Rose Bank'' crew members were rescued, but the lifeboats were unable to secure the yacht for towing. The drifting ''Rose Bank'' was recovered three days later by a fishing boat and was towed into

Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

. Coxswain Ian Firman was awarded another RNLI bronze medal for his part in the rescue.

Service and rescues 2000 to date

References

{{Lifeboat Stations in Suffolk Mersey-class lifeboats