All weather lifeboat stations

Afloat stations

In areas where there is an easily accessible harbour that does not dry out at low tide, all-weather lifeboats lie afloat on a mooring. They may be moored alongside a pontoon, where lifeboat crew simply get aboard and cast off. If this is not possible, the lifeboats may lie afloat at a mooring buoy in the harbour. In these cases the crew use a boarding boat to get out to the lifeboat. Severn and Trent class lifeboats are designed to lie afloat. Mersey, Tyne and Tamar classes can also lie afloat.

Slipway stations

In locations where the only way to launch a lifeboat is over rocks or where there is a large tidal range, a slipway can be used to launch the lifeboat. These stations need a group of shore helpers, as well as the lifeboat crew, to launch and recover the lifeboat. The launch is rapid but, on return from a service, the lifeboat must be carefully reversed to the bottom of the slipway and a cable attached before being winched back up into position ready for the next launch. Tyne, Tamar and Mersey class lifeboats can be launched from slipways

Carriage stations

In some places the lifeboat has to launch from a sand or shingle beach. It may even need to be taken by road from the boathouse to the beach before it can be launched. Here a carriage and tractor are used to haul the lifeboat into the water. Upon reaching deeper water the lifeboat then floats off the carriage and motors away. A team of shore helpers is required to help the lifeboat crew launch and recover a carriage-launched lifeboat. The Mersey class lifeboat is designed for launching from a carriage, although it can also lie afloat or be launched from a slipway.

Davit stations

In some locations a special launching crane system, known as a davit, is used to launch and recover the lifeboat. Workington is the only all-weather lifeboat to be launched by a davit system over the dock wall. Strong slings are placed under the lifeboat's hull and the crane is then used to winch the lifeboat into the water. Following a rescue operation the boat is recovered and winched back up so that it's ready for the next call out.

Inshore lifeboat stations

Trolley launch
A D class lifeboat can be launched from a trolley that is pushed down to the water's edge by a quad bike or a tractor until the lifeboat floats. The trolley is then pulled away from the lifeboat.

DoDo trailer launch
The drive-on drive-off (DoDo) trailer is used to launch the larger B class lifeboats: the Atlantic 21, 75 and 85 lifeboats. It is usually hauled by a small, four-wheeled waterproof tractor with a specially designed hull and a waterproof cab.

Davit launch
Small cranes, known as davits, can be used to launch inshore lifeboats. The lifeboats are winched off a trolley, using a manual or electric winching system, and over a dockside, quay or pier, into the water. Most davits are fixed, although Macduff lifeboat station has a mobile davit.

Floating boathouses and cradles
Three lifeboat stations launch their inshore lifeboats from floating boathouses: Brighton, Burnham-on-Crouch and Poole. The boathouses protect the lifeboats when not in use. The lifeboat is kept on a cradle out of the water. When it needs to be launched the cradle is lowered into the water the lifeboat is then driven out of the boathouse. On its return the lifeboat is backed into the boathouse and the cradle is lifted out of the water, ready for the next shout. Plymouth and Sunderland also launch their lifeboats from cradles, but they do not have floating boathouses.

Hovercraft
A hovercraft can be launched from any flat area, such as a car park, a beach, a field or a road, provided there is enough room. Hovercraft can be moved from place to place using specialist transporter vehicles.