Oakley class lifeboat

37-02 Manchester Unity of Oddfellows
Class overview
Builders:	J.Samuel White
Operators:	Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Preceded by:	Watson
Succeeded by:	Rother, Solent
Cost:	£32,000
Built:	1958–1971
In service:	1958–1993
Completed:	31
Retired:	31
Preserved:	10
General characteristics
Displacement:	30 long tons (30 t)
Length:	37 ft (11 m)and 48 ft 6 in (14.78 m)
Beam:	11 ft 6 in (3.51 m)and 14 ft 0 in (4.27 m)
Draught:	3 ft 4 in (1.02 m)and 4 ft 4 in (1.32 m)
Propulsion:	Two diesel engines (various types)
Speed:	8 knots (9.2 mph; 15 km/h)
Complement:	7

The Oakley class lifeboat was a self-righting lifeboat operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution around the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland between 1958 and 1993. During this time they saved a combined total of 1,456 lives in 3,734 rescue launches.

The class is known by the name of its designer, Richard A. Oakley.

History

During the first half of the twentieth century the RNLI had equipped its lifeboat stations with motor lifeboats designed by G L Watson and, later, J R Barnett. Both these men had designed boats that were generally stable, but unlike the earlier Peake boats, were not self-righting. Part of the problem was that motor lifeboats were much heavier than 'pulling and sailing' boats which could be packed with cork to make them buoyant. Richard Oakley worked out how to use shifting water ballast to create a self-righting motor lifeboat.^[1][2]

Oakley's 37-foot (11 m) prototype was launched in 1958 and placed in service at Scarborough. Production boats started to be built in 1961 and in 1963 the prototype 48-foot-6-inch (14.78 m) boat was launched and sent to Yarmouth. The last Barnett Class was built in 1960 and the final Watson Class in 1963, after which Oakleys were the only all-weather lifeboats put into service for the next eight years.^[3]

Design

The Oakley was designed as a self-righting boat. The design combined great stability with the ability to self-right in the event of it capsizing. This was achieved by a system of shifting water ballast. The system worked by the lifeboat taking on one and half tons of sea water at launching in to a tank built into the base of the hull. If the lifeboat then reached a crucial point of capsize the ballast water would transfer through valves to a righting tank built into the port side. If the capsize was to the starboard side of the lifeboat, the water shift started when an angle of 165° was reached. This would push the boat into completing a full 360° roll. If the capsize was to the port side, the water transfer started at 110°. In this case the weight of water combined with the weight of machinery aboard the lifeboat usually managed to stop the roll and allow the lifeboat to bounce back to upright.^{[citation needed]} The water was discharged from the tank when the ship was taken out of the sea after each launch. A problem emerged with damp sand left in the tank after the water was drained. This caused a weak electrolytic action that eroded the copper nails which held the wooden hulls together.^[4]

The hull of the Oakley class was constructed from two wooden skins with a layer of calico between. After several years it was found that the calico absorbed water which caused softening of the wood around the copper nails. This led to a series of surveys in the late 1980s and the withdrawal of some boats, or replanking of others.^[4] The skins were made from diagonally laid African Mahogany planks. The outer one was 0.375 inches (9.5 mm) thick with the inner 0.25 inches (6.4 mm). The keel was iron and weighed 1.154 tons. The hull was divided into eleven watertight compartments.^{[citation needed]}

Two sizes were built. Most boats were 37 feet (11 m) in length and 11 feet 6 inches (3.51 m) in beam. It displaced 12.05 tons when fully laden with crew and gear. Five larger boats were built that were 48 feet 6 inches (14.78 m) long and 14 feet (4.3 m) wide.

Fleet

37 foot boats

ON	Op. No.	Name	Built	In service	Principal stations	Further use[3]
942	37-01	J.G. Graves of Sheffield	1958	1958–1993	Scarborough	Preserved at Chatham Historic Dockyard
960	37-02	Manchester Unity of Oddfellows	1961	1961–1990	Sheringham	Preserved at Sheringham
961	37-03	Calouste Gulbenkian	1961	1962–1991	Weston-super-Mare	Under restoration at Donaghadee
966	37-04	Robert and Dorothy Hardcastle	1962	1962–1993	Boulmer, Filey	Preserved at Hartlepool
972	37-05	The Will and Fanny Kirby	1963	1963–1993	Seaham, Flamborough	Preserved at Chatham Historic Dockyard
973	37-06	Fairlight	1964	1964–1992	Hastings	Pleasure boat at Blakeney Harbour
974	37-07	Jane Hay	1964	1964–1992	St Abbs, Newcastle	Broken up 1995
975	37-08	Sir James Knott	1963	1963–1990	Cullercoats, Redcar	Preserved at Redcar
976	37-09	Lilly Wainwright	1964	1964–1992	Llandudno	Pleasure boat at Cobh
977	37-10	Charles Fred Grantham	1964	1964–1993	Skegness	Broken up 1993
978	37-11	The Royal Thames	1964	1964–1993	Runswick, Pwllheli
979	37-12	Amelia	1964	1964–1991	Scarborough	Originally named James and Catherine Macfarlane. Preserved at Charlestown
980	37-13	William Henry and Mary King	1964	1964–1990	Bridlington	Children's playground, Highbury, London
981	37-14	Mary Pullman	1964	1965–1989	Kirkcudbright	Hull on display at Spalding
982	37-15	Ernest Tom Nethercoat	1965	1965–1991	Wells	In store
983	37-16	The Doctors	1965	1965–1991	Anstruther	Under restoration at Donaghadee
984	37-17	Mary Joicey	1966	1966–1989	Newbiggin	Under restoration for display at Newbiggin
985	37-18	Valentine Wyndham-Quin	1967	1968–1988	Clacton-on-Sea	Preserved at Harwich
986	37-19	Lloyds II	1966	1966–1992	Ilfracombe	Broken up 1993
991	37-20	Edward and Mary Lester	1967	1967–1989	North Sunderland	Broken up 1989
992	37-21	Frank Penfold Marshall	1968	1968–1989	St Ives	Broken up 1989
993	37-22	Har Lil	1968	1968–1990	Rhyl	At South Ferriby
994	37-23	The Vincent Nesfield	1969	1969–1991	Kilmore Quay	Broken up 1991
995	37-24	James Ball Ritchie	1970	1970–1991	Ramsey	Broken up 1992
996	37-25	Birds Eye	1970	1970–1990	New Quay	Preserved at Moelfre
997	37-26	Lady Murphy	1971	1972–1988	Kilmore Quay	Broken up 1995

48 foot 6 inch boats

ON	Op. No.	Name	Built	In service	Principal stations	Further use[3]
968	48-01	The Earl and Countess Howe	1963	1963–1984	Yarmouth, Walton-on-the Naze	Broken up 2003
989	48-02	James and Catherine Macfarlane	1967	1967–1987	Padstow	Preserved at Land's End
990	48-03	Ruby and Arthur Reed	1966	1967–1988	Cromer	Preserved at Hythe
1015	48-12	Charles Henry	1968	1969–1987	Selsey	Pleasure boat at Exeter
1016	48-13	Princess Marina	1970	1970–1988	Wick	Broken up 2003

References

1. ^ Leach, Nicholas (2003). Oakley Class Lifeboats: an Illustrated History of the RNLI's Oakley and Rother Lifeboats. Stroud: Tempus. ISBN 978-0-7524-2784-3. 
2. ^ Wake-Walker, Edward; Deane, Heather and Purches, Georgette (1989). Lifeboat! Royal National Lifeboat Institution. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-1835-9. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} Denton, Tony (2009). Handbook 2009. Shrewsbury: Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 22–27. 
4. ^ ^{a b} Kipling, Ray; Kipling, Susannah (2006). Never Turn Back. Stroud: Sutton Publishing. pp. 87–88. ISBN 0-7509-4307-6.