Military Power Boats Speed In To Portsmouth Historic Dockyard
She is part of our distinguished naval history, having served alongside aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal and now Fast Motor Boat (FMB) 43957 who came to rest on the 7th May 2009 in her restored glory at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, has been joined by the RAF’s Sea Plane Tender (ST) 1502 and will later be joined by a motor dinghy from HMS Dainty.
The British Military Powerboat Trust (BMPT) has transferred ownership of its vessels to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard and now Portsmouth Naval Base Property Trust, owner of the land and buildings in the Historic Dockyard, have taken custody of these magnificent Powerboats.
One of the few surviving boats of her type, FMB 43957 was the first of a new type of officers’ motor boat built in 1944 and allocated to HMS Diadem, a Dido-class cruiser. She used to ferry the captain and his officer between ship and shore for 12 years in the 1950s and 1960s before falling into disrepair. However, thanks to the hard work from the BMPT, visitors to the Dockyard will soon be able to see her in her former glory in plum red paint.
Portsmouth Naval Base Property Trust’s Curator and Boatkeeper, Brian Patterson, received formal handover of FMB 43957 inside Boathouse 4, Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, where the vessels will be laid up temporarily before being moved to their final locations for display.
Mr Patterson said: ‘It’s wonderful to be able to add some real James Bond-style boats to our ever-growing collection. My volunteers are really going to enjoy working on them – they’re already calling me Q!’
On the 18th July 2009, Sea Plane Tender (ST) 1502 was delivered to the Historic Dockyard by sea. Built in 1942, this Royal Air Force craft was used in the UK during and after WWII as a ferry between seaplanes and their shore bases and also served as a rescue boat for airmen stranded in coastal waters. She came out of RAF service in the mid 1950s and went into private hands to be converted to a pleasure craft, giving some fine service in this capacity but eventually falling into disrepair. Taken on by British Military Powerboat Trust in the late 1990s, ST 1502 is now restored to her former glory with an impressive top speed of 20 knots.
The third vessel is a 16ft fast motor dinghy of a type built between 1936 and 1960 which could be seen on all destroyers. They were sometimes known as the skim and dish as they were so lightly constructed that they were not that stable other than in a calm sea. The boat the Historic Dockyard has inherited was known to have been aboard the Daring class destroyer HMS Dainty that was built by J Samuel White at Cowes in 1953, so has a local connection. There is still some restoration to be done to complete the upper deck and fit her with an appropriate engine.
The transfer of the vessels has taken place following the BMPT’s failure to find a permanent home in Southampton, despite years of searching. Under the new arrangements, the BMPT’s volunteers will join forces with those at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard to care for the vessels.
Richard Hellyer of the BMPT said: ‘The past few years have been difficult ones. While the name of the British Military Powerboat Trust will cease to be, this is merely the end of our first chapter and the beginning of a new and very exciting future with Portsmouth Naval Base Property Trust.
‘All our boats, photographs and boat plans will be available for all to see, and with 600,000 visitors passing through the gates of Portsmouth Historic Dockyard annually, the Trust’s assets will go from being seen by the few, to being seen by the many.’
