Lifeboats representing the lifesaving associations of France, the Federal Republic of West Germany, Norway, Poland and Sweden made the voyage to the West Country last summer to be present for the opening weekend of the International Lifeboat Exhibition. Their visit was one of the happiest occasions in a memorable year.six OVERSEAS LIFEBOATS honoured the RNLI by coming over to this country last summer to take part in the Institution's 150th anniversary. Arriving off Poole on July 14, they were met by four modern British lifeboats with which, two days later, they were to sail in company to Plymouth, ready for the opening of the International Lifeboat Exhibition there on July 19. Moored in Millbay Docks with the British boats, they remained over the first weekend, taking their place in the escort of the Duke of Kent into Plymouth Sound when he came to open the exhibition, and in the flotilla which put to sea on the Sunday to lay a wreath on the water in memory of lifeboatmen of all nations.

They and their crews were most welcome guests. It was an unique opportunity for people in this country to see the results of contemporary thought on design and equipment in other lifesaving organizations. Nor was it an opportunity missed. At all times that the boats were on view they were crowded with visitors eager to look over them, to talk to the men who sail in them and to learn.

Perhaps one of the first lessons that such a fleet brings home is that lifeboats in different parts of the world have different work to do in very different geographic and climatic conditions: a fact which is reflected in their design.

Even City of Bristol, the latest of our 70' Clyde class lifeboats and the flagship of the boats at Plymouth, looked comparatively small beside R. S. Platou of Norway and Sigurd Golje from Sweden, both 130 tons, the former 80' overall, the latter 78'. But then, both these Scandinavian boats are designed piimarily to accompany their fishing fleets to sea. They may be away from land for months at a time, and their brief is to save not only life but also ships; if a fishing boat is in trouble they will tow her home. Thus, each is fitted with a massive towing hook; Platan's mounted on a great semicircular track, dominates her after deck. Sigurd Golje is fitted with hefty bow and stern fenders, and she has a variable pitch propeller which, to help towing, can be adjusted to suit the load.

Both boats are prepared for intense cold, with heating facilities to combat one of the most dangerous of their natural enemies—icing up above decks.

Sigurd Golje can be used as an icebreaker in winter, and Platou will be out on Arctic waters. Below decks the impression is almost of a 'little liner'; saloon, galley and cabins are well planned and comfortable for prolonged habitation.

Monsun, from Poland (72 tons, 69' overall) is another lifeboat which can also be a salvage tug, with towing hook, two-way hydraulic towing winch and a taffrail that can be opened at the stern.

In her deckhouse there are two square, watertight hatches, one giving on to the side deck and one on to the after deck, through which stretchers can be passed.

As a safety factor, Monsun has two complete and separate watertight engine rooms, and her equipment ranges from powerful searchlights and a wealth of modern electronic navigational aids down to basic scrambling nets. She is the newest boat in her class and had only left her builders a month before she came to Plymouth.

Patron Emit Guyot, from France, was another new boat which had not yet taken up station. She was destined for Belle He where her duties will be nearer to those of British lifeboats than to those of the big North European rescue cruisers. Her crew of five will be made upof local fishermen. 50' overall, she is an 'all seasons' boat with a maximum speed of 14 knots—and how well she rode the seas could be seen on the passage to Plymouth. The benches in her cabins are fitted with safety belts.

A boat of comparable size (45') was the single skin aluminium patrol boat from Norway, Ragni Berg. She is manned by a crew of only two, who live aboard; she has a maximum speed of 22 knots and is designed for summer months, rescue work in Southern Norway. One interesting feature in this cleanly-designed and simple boat was that a sturdy, hydraulically-sprung seat was provided for each of the crew in the wheelhouse, greatly reducing fatigue in rough seas.

Last of the six boats was another one from Northern Europe, with again an entirely different character: Arwed Emminghaus.

She is an answer, originally thought out by Capt. John Schumacher, who was himself at Plymouth as an International Lifeboat Conference delegate, to the problem raised by the shallow coastal waters of Germany. This 87.25' rescue cruiser carries on her after deck a daughter boat, which is herself a complete little lifeboat and which can be launched to go to the help of casualties in waters too shallow for the mother ship. Ten years old and in immaculate condition, Arwed Emminghaus is a most interesting ship. The cabin of her wheelhouse, for instance, can be transformed into an operating theatre, if neccessary, with a central position for a stretcher.

Her engine room has a big-ship appearance, with plenty of working space for maintenance, its own workbench and a wide range of tools including an electric drill. With a maximum speed of approaching 24 knots, she was the fastest boat of the flotilla which sailed from Poole to Plymouth and kept company with our own Arun 54-03.

In a memorable year, the visit of these six lifeboats was surely one of the happiest occasions, playing an important part in the international sharing of the results of research and experience..