Getting 15 tonnes of lifeboat across a beach is an age-old task …

Lifeboat launch and recovery is a vital link in the lifesaving chain and the stations that cannot use afloat moorings, slipways and davit systems must rely on other means to get them in the water.

The horse-drawn carriage launch was a familiar but spectacular sight for the best part of a century so it was probably with sadness for some that machine gradually replaced beast in the 1920s.

It was with good reason though, as The Life-Boat Journal explained at the time: ‘It is becoming increasingly hard to get the use of horses and the men to manage them … they have frequently to be brought long distances, with consequent delay, and the cost of hiring is rapidly becoming prohibitive.’

Farm horses were being replaced by tractors and it was these agricultural vehicles that the RNLI began modifying with waterproof compartments. They may have been rated with the power of 15 horses but these machines could easily tackle terrain that horses could not – and be operated by just one person. By 1935 it was all over for the horse-powered lifeboat launch.

The RNLI worked with specialist companies to adapt a range of well-known commercial tractors. Waterproofing techniques improved and they moved into deeper waters. By the 1970s the charity was driving the development of the Talus MB-764 tractor. Looking somewhat like a lunar landing buggy, this marinised County tractor can wade up to 1.5m. Soon tractors became fully submersible, like the Talus MB-H crawler. Designed for the RNLI in 1982, this little V8 diesel ‘tank’ has a waterproof cockpit with dual controls, so the driver can operate it facing in either direction. It can be ‘battened down’ and abandoned in up to 9m of water for later recovery should it ever break down.

In 1990, the charity jointly developed another Talus, especially for launching inshore lifeboats. The MB-4H has a hydraulic transmission, powered by a 105hp turbo diesel engine. The system delivers high torque and the driver can quickly adjust speed without shifting gears so it’s less likely to get stuck. Affectionately known as ‘bendy’, it pivots between engine and cab and is highly manoeuvrable.

The RNLI continues to develop its remarkable launch and recovery vehicles today (see the latest system for the new Shannon class on page 27). This doesn’t come cheaply of course and it’s thanks to support from people like you that our lifesavers no longer rely on the brewery nags turning up!