of getting a survivor directly out of the water. How many men does it take to get one man out of the water? Jones: We picked up two men a month ago, and one of them was completely unconscious. We put the scrambling net down; two men went over the side and helped two more of the crew pull him aboard.

Portchmouth: It took four all together.

Jones: I have picked up dozens and dozens of chaps and it is amazing what hard work it is. It is fantastic. I can lift 12 stone up easily ashore, but, at sea, you try and lift a 12-stone man aboard.

Voice: It is very hard work. They are very, very heavy. I agree with Harry.

You have got to have that scrambling net down because otherwise your men cannot get down low enough. If they lean over the guardrail and start pulling, they are going to go over as well.

Grant: We get two chaps down on the scrambling net, one of them with a good rope to get a bowline round the man in the water. Then you can get a couple of blokes up on the top of the 48ft 6in Oakley and they can get a really good pull.

Portchmouth: Would you think, instead of a bowline, it would be a good idea if all lifeboats carried a helicopter rescue strop? Voice: Definitely. Even if a man was half dazed he could see what was expected of him and would help himself into it. And it is comfortable.

Jones: Yes. You imagine, maybe a young lady in the water who is not so big boned as a man . . . a rope will almost cut her shoulders to pieces. But a rescue strop, now . . .

Voice: I think that would be a most useful item on board the boat. Not very costly, and no stowage space required for it. You deliver one to Shoreham, and we will use it! England: There is one thing we haven't discussed and to us it was of paramount importance that morning when we went out to Skopelos Sky. Before we went down the slipway we had seen the sea.

We had listened to the wind all night and it was frightening. We never, ever expected to launch in conditions like that, and if we had not had a selfrighting lifeboat, I don't know that we would have launched that morning. I thought that no way were we going to get away for any length of time at sea without that boat turning over. We fully expected it to happen. And knowing she is supposed to come up the right way is very reassuring. I think great thanks ought to be given to the general public and the Institution for trying to get all these lifeboats self-righting by 1980, after the two Scottish lifeboats had been lost, as they were, in 1969 and 1970. And then, only what? eight or nine years later, two Scottish lifeboats were turned over in 1979 and both came up; and one, with an airbag, was a Barnett, which to me was one of the finest boats the Institution ever built.

Portchmouth: Well, gentlemen, we have talked about a number of points which are vital aspects of rescue at sea.

I hope this discussion serves to stimulate further thought in those directions, not only by ourselves and our lifeboat colleagues, but also by any other seafarers who appreciate that thinking ahead usually alleviates any crisis which may occur..