The E-class lifeboat forms part of the RNLI fleet in the United Kingdom, operating exclusively in the tidal reach of the River Thames in London. The class was introduced in 2002 to serve the tidal reach of the River Thames, which had not previously been covered by an RNLI rescue service, as a result of a much delayed enquiry into the Marchioness disaster in 1989, in which 51 people died. The enquiry criticised the lack of a rescue service for the tidal Thames, and the UK government asked the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the Port of London Authority and the RNLI to work together to set up a dedicated Search and Rescue service for this stretch of the river.[1]
There are three different versions of the E-class, described as the Mark I, Mark II and Mark III. Mark I boats operated from 2002, but their service came to an end with the retirement of Legacy in 2021. As of December 2023, there are 4 boats in service, three Mark II's, and a Mk III, split between Chiswick Lifeboat Station to the west of central London, and Tower Lifeboat Station at Victoria Embankment in central London.[2]
An E-class boat also originally operated from Gravesend Lifeboat Station to the east of London, but it proved less suitable for the more estuarine conditions found there and was replaced in 2008 with an Atlantic 85, B-827 Olive Laura Deane II.[3]
A 4th type, a Valiant RIB, bearing no relationship to the Thames boats, was designated E-01 in 2001, and stationed at Enniskillen (Lower) in Northern Ireland between 2001 and 2003.[3]
Mark I
Mark I E-005 Legacy on stationMark I E-002 Olive Laura Deare, retired and on display at Chatham Historic Dockyard
The Mark I boat was an off the shelf design built by Tiger Marine. It is made of an aluminium alloy with a closed cell polythene foam collar, and is powered by two Steyr marine diesel engines delivering 240 horsepower (180 kW) each at 4,100rpm and driving Hamiltonwaterjets. This combination gives the boats a maximum speed of 33 knots (38 mph; 61 km/h) and the extreme maneuverability which is essential to enable crews to reach casualties in the fast flowing river.
The boat is 9 metres (30 ft) long, has a beam of 2.94 metres (9 ft 8 in), a draft of 0.64 metres (2 ft 1 in), a displacement of 3.86 tonnes (3.80 long tons; 4.25 short tons), and carries three crew. The maximum endurance at full speed is 4 hours.[2]
[5] Sold. Refit at Diverse Marine, Cowes, April 2023.
Mark II
Mark II E-07 Hurley Burly on station
The Mark II boat was designed by RNLI engineers, incorporating experience gained with the Mark I boats, and built by Marine Specialised Technology in Liverpool. It has a glass epoxy-resin composite hull with a detachable polyurethane covered solid closed-cell foam collar, and is powered by two Volvo marine diesel engines delivering 435 horsepower (324 kW) each at 3,300rpm and driving Hamilton waterjets. This combination gives the boats an improved maximum speed of 40 knots (46 mph; 74 km/h).
The boat is 10.5 metres (34 ft) long, has a beam of 2.9 metres (9 ft 6 in) without collar and 3.5 metres (11 ft) with collar, a draft of 0.7 metres (2 ft 4 in), a displacement of 5.4 tonnes (5.3 long tons; 6.0 short tons), and carries four crew. The maximum endurance at full speed is 3 hours.[2]
The Mark III E-class Lifeboat is a Delta 1100TX 11m RIB Lifeboat, built by Delta Power Group of Hazel Grove, Stockport, Cheshire.
The hull is a deep 'V' Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) moulding. It is powered by two Volvo D6-440 marine diesel engines delivering 440 horsepower and driving two Hamilton HJ274 waterjets, with a maximum speed of 45 knots (51mph; 83km/h).
The boat is 11.05 metres (36 ft) long, has a beam of 2.78 metres (9ft 1in) without collar and 3.36 metres (11 ft) with collar, with a displacement of 7780Kg (with four crew). The maximum endurance at full speed is 3 hours.[8]
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