Dublin Pilots were hugely impressed with the Cork boat’s rough weather sea keeping abilities. The Cork Pilot boat has been severely tested in what has proven the stormiest winter on record, boarding pilots in severe storm force 11 with 100mph winds and 30ft seas. All its coxwains report it to be an excellent sea boat, inspiring confidence in the most difficult of conditions.

Cork Ports’ Harbour Master Michael Mc Carthy gave testament to its abilities saying, ‘The Gleann Mor has been tested in service during severe conditions and her handling both running into and ahead of the weather is reassuringly controllable. We also find that due to her twin chine hull design, spray suppression is very effective and visibility is exceptional. The deck with its high freeboard also remains very dry. During ship boarding in rough conditions her design makes a very stable platform for the pilot and assists the coxswain in coming away from vessels.’

The Port of Dublin’s pilot boat was launched in February and has been undergoing extensive sea trial since then to test its specialised equipment. Dublin’s Harbour Master David Dignam has been most impressed by the vessel’s ability to run before big breaking seas in safety with absolutely zero broaching tendencies.

The vessel is fitted with Caterpillar C12 12 litre engines rated at 575hp, providing a maximum speed of 27 knots for a boat displacing 17,000kg. This exceeds the contract requirement by a large margin, so the engines will be governed back to 450hp, providing a comfortable 22-23 knot operational speed.

The Port of Dublin’s vessel incorporates a number of small design changes from the Cork boat to accommodate the specific requirements of its port. The vessel has the same central helm position, facilitating boarding on the side most suited to the prevailing conditions, a feature that has proved very popular with the Cork coxswains.

Heavy build strength translates into the heavy displacement, giving the vessel a very solid feel in the water which is especially beneficial when coming alongside with steadier, slower motions than would be felt in a lighter, and correspondingly livelier craft. The overall ethos of the design was to provide the ultimate in seaworthiness and survivability for a craft designed to operate in all weathers.

The Dublin vessel is fitted with specialised coxswain identification system and impact / damage data logging hardware. A swipe card system will log on individual crew identification allowing the port an accurate record of who is control of the craft at any given time. In addition, a data logging system has been designed with GPS monitoring of speed, position, course and time. It is connected to a six axis accelerometer fitted on the vessel’s hull structure and will continuously record data when predetermined impact thresholds are exceeded. This will effectively become a ‘black box’ system similar to that used in the aircraft industry. It will allow the port to download and determine data corresponding to any impact damage. In addition, the engines are fitted with a number of unique features such as remote monitoring of  operating parameters from a shore based station, three minute cool down when switched off, and engine stand heaters.