A tribute to Anthony Knight

Chairman of Britain’s largest independent tug and barge owners, the JP Knight Group, Anthony Knight was well known in shipping circles and took an active interest in all aspects of towage and shipping in general. His commitment and contribution to the towage industry was immense but often unobtrusive.

He served as an executive member of the British Tugowners Association for almost a quarter of a century, becoming its second President. Anthony also held a similar position in the European Tugowners Association for twenty years and serving as Chairman from 1996 to 1998.

Anthony was born in 1932 into a tug owning family with a history dating back to 1892. A very tough and Victorian upbringing saw him apprenticed in 1949 at age17, firstly to the shipyard of James Pollock & Sons, Faversham, then British Polar Engines on the Clyde and later Richard’s Ironworks, Lowestoft. His interest in engineering led to the incorporation of several innovations into the tug fleets of JP Knight and stayed with him throughout his life. In 1952 he entered the Royal Navy, was commissioned as Sub-lieutenant RNVR (Executive Branch), served on aircraft carriers during the Korean War and commanded an MTB in Malta.

His business career began upon joining the family company in the mid 1950s, traditionally at the bottom, in the company’s repair depot on the Medway. During the heyday of the Medway towage business through the 1960s he was appointed Managing Director of JP Knight (Rochester) Ltd and was instrumental in the introduction of the single screw tugs Kennet and Knighton. Both featured several advanced (at that time) innovations, including air operated controls and remote start of the main and all auxiliary machinery. In 1976 he moved to the Scottish Highlands to consolidate the group’s activities at JP Knight (Caledonian) Ltd and become the founding Managing Director of the Orkney Towage Company. Anthony Knight was appointed Chairman of JP Knight in 1982, a position he held until he passed away.

One of his most profound contributions to towage in the UK and Europe was the introduction of the first Japanese built azimuthing stern-drive (ASD) tug Kinross in 1981 to the Cromarty Firth. The arrival of this and many subsequent ASD tugs from the Far East undoubtedly accelerated the use of this type of propulsion technology throughout Europe. His passion for travel, new environments and adventure also lead the company into business in the United States, Aruba, the South China Sea and Guyana in South America.

In 2000 Anthony handed over the day to day control of the company and it’s subsidiaries to his son Richard, who recently took JP Knight into the deepsea towage and salvage market with the acquisition of Klyne Tugs Ltd.

Anthony had been fighting a serious illness for some considerable time and passed away peacefully at his home in Kent with his family by his side.