Atlantic College Atlantic College is a remarkable place in many respects. Housed in St Donat's Castle, built in the fifteenth century, it is perched on rocky slopes which tumble down to the waters of the Bristol Channel. Within the grounds are dormitories, classrooms, laboratories, tennis courts, swimming pool, gym and a marine research centre, a building for Coastguard cliff rescue equipment and a lifeboat station. The college has pioneered a form of education which has spread from this original South Wales location to countries throughout the world. But most impressive of all is the unbounded vitality of the college which springs from its students who come from every corner of the earth to learn together. The Atlantic 21 rigid inflatable lifeboat had its origins at the college; the students form the crew of the Atlantic now stationed there and on two occasions letters of thanks from the RNLI have been sent for rescues they have carried out. The names of the crews in those letters—G. Unger, W. de Voge, P. Allen, M. Barker, L. Linstedt, A. Lunn and A. Mohammed— give an idea of the international flavour of the college.

It was particularly fitting, therefore, that on Friday May 6, during the college's twenty-first anniversary year, His Excellency the American Ambassador, the Hon. John J. Louis, Jnr, visited Atlantic College to name its new lifeboat American Ambassador. The ceremony was opened by the students playing three national anthems, Welsh, British and American, and the Headmaster, Andrew Stuart, welcoming the guests, explained that the college was founded on the principle of service and described the lifeboat service as 'one of the purest forms of service as well as challenge'.

Recent reconstruction work in the seafront area included the new boathouse which is named in honour of Rear Admiral Desmond Hoare, the founding headmaster of the college and a former member of the RNLI Committee of Management. Admiral Hoare gave an amusing and fascinating account of how the college had designed and developed the first rigid inflatable boats which led to the Atlantic 21. He modestly claimed that no individual could take credit for the boat but said that it was '. . . designed by the Bristol Channel, with the midwives of trial and error and 500 students as development officers'. Mrs Hoare unveiled a plaque on the boathouse and the doors swung open to reveal the sparkling new lifeboat, a tribute to Admiral Hoare's work and to the RNLI Cowes base which was represented at the ceremony by Lt David Stogdon, Mike Brinton and Mick Butler who have been responsible for the considerable development of the Atlantic 21 in the past decade.

In accepting the lifeboat from the Duke of Atholl, chairman of the Institution, the honorary secretary of the station, Dean Glover, mentioned another of the college's firsts. In 1969 Admiral Hoare sent to RNLI headquarters a crew application form which was duly returned with an acceptance note.

The name on the form was E. Hostvedt, an 18-year-old student from Norway, and only after the RNLI had accepted the application did Admiral Hoare write back, with a photograph of an attractive girl, Elizabeth, who had just become the RNLI's first enrolled female crew member.

Following a service of dedication, the American Ambassador said: 'The task of saving life at sea transcends national boundaries, ignores races and creeds and is truly humanitarian. The sea is said to be a cruel master and your RNLI crews are challenging the dangers and moods of the oceans to try and prevent that cruelty from spreading too far.' The Atlantic 21 was one of two provided by the American British Lifeboat Appeal and the Ambassador continued: 7 am proud that my countrymen responded generously to provide your new lifeboat. I am sure that the boat operating from this splendid college will help to further international goodwill in its lifesaving missions.' He then named the lifeboat American Ambassaor and embarked for a short trip to sea, an experience he clearly enjoyed.

Hunstanton At Hunstanton, where the second of the two Atlantic 21s provided by the American British Lifeboat Appeal is stationed, an American atmosphere was provided on Wednesday May 11 by the guard of honour of US servicemen and inspected by Vice-Admiral Donald Engen, a former president of the Association for Rescue at Sea, AFRAS. The new lifeboat was handed over to the station by Vice-Admiral Sir Peter Compston, who was the appeal chairman, and accepted by the honorary secretary Major John Day. Admiral Compston paid tribute to the members of his appeal committee who worked hard among the American community in this country to enlist their support for the RNLI. He went on to thank members of AFRAS who raised money in the United States. After the service of dedication, Admiral Engen spoke of the close links between Britain and the United States and outlined the aims of AFRAS: '... to encourage endeavour in the field of search and rescue, to encourage international co-operation and to help voluntary search and rescue organisations with financial support.' As a US Navy officer, he said he had seen the sea in many states and expressed his admiration for those who go out to rescue others. ' is our hope that it will be a great comfort to those who use the seas along this coast and, indeed to my fellow countrymen in the US Air Force who train over these waters, to know that the Hunstanton lifeboatmen are safeguarding their interests.

Gentlemen, I wish you good luck in your missions.' Admiral Engen then named the lifeboat Spirit of America and, with his wife, went to sea for first-hand experience of the boat as she was put through her paces.

AFRAS The Association for Rescue at Sea continues to help the RNLI and other lifeboat services. In 1982 AFRAS began to aid the two Dutch voluntary lifeboat services and a fledgling volunteer lifesaving service on the Canadian West Coast. It has established a gold medal award for rescue at sea which last year was presented to US Coast Guard Officer John D. Ornellas for his heroic action in rescuing people from the stricken vessel Gail off the Umpqua River Bar, Oregon. Admiral Engen made the presentation but as he was subsequently appointed to the National Transportation and Safety Board, Vice- Admiral John G. Finneran has taken over as president of AFRAS.

Anyone wishing to know more about AFRAS should write to Association for Rescue at Sea, c/o National Westminster Bank, 100 Wall Street, New York, NY 10005, USA. Meanwhile in this country there is an American branch actively engaged in fund raising. Details from RNLI HQ, West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset, BH15 1HZ.—R.K..