Larne Lifeboat Station
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Larne Lifeboat Station | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Larne Lifeboat Station | |
  Location within Northern Ireland | |
| General information | |
| Type | RNLI Lifeboat Station |
| Location | 17 Olderfleet Rd, Larne, County Antrim, BT40 1AS, Northern Ireland |
| Coordinates | 54°50′48.2″N 5°48′00.5″W / 54.846722°N 5.800139°W |
| Opened | 26 December 1994 |
| Owner | Royal National Lifeboat Institution |
| Website | |
| Larne RNLI Lifeboat Station | |
Larne Lifeboat Station is located at Olderfleet Road, in Larne, a port town in County Antrim, sitting on the eastern entrance to Larne Lough, on the east coast of Northern Ireland.
A lifeboat station was first established at Larne on 26 December 1994 by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).[1]
The station currently operates the Shannon-class All-weather lifeboat, 13-58 Machiko Nancy (ON 1365), on station since 2026, and the smaller D-class (IB1) Inshore lifeboat, Terry (D-783), on station since 2015.[2]
At the annual meeting of the RNLI on 18 May 1995 at the Barbican Center in London, it was announced that 10 stations had been established in the previous year. It was felt that one place had particular need for the placement of a lifeboat, which was at Larne in Northern Ireland. The station at Larne was established with the arrival of the D-class (EA16) Inshore lifeboat Michel Philippe Wolvers (D-326) on 26 September 1994.[1][3]
Just six months later, on 19 March 1995, the station saw the arrival of their temporary All-weather lifeboat, the Waveney-class 44-022 The William and Jane (ON 1079), previously on service at Blyth, and named after the parents of one of the donors, the late Miss Mabel Hewson.[4]
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A permanent Inshore lifeboat was placed at the station on 8 June 1996. The lifeboat was funded by long-time RNLI supporter Mrs Jean Cudby, formerly of Belfast, and named Jean and Paul (D-499) in memory of her late husband.[5]
The temporary Waveney-class lifeboat remained on station until 11 November 1997, when she was replaced by another temporary boat, the larger 52-foot Arun-class lifeboat 52-15 Hyman Winstone (ON 1067), which had previously been stationed at Holyhead and at Ballycotton.[1]
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A new floating berth for the All-weather lifeboat was constructed and completed in May 2000, in time for the arrival of Larne's permanent lifeboat. On 3 August, a new Trent-class All-weather lifeboat 14-30 Dr. John McSparran (ON 1246) arrived on station. At a ceremony at East Antrim Boat Club on Saturday 30 September 2000, funded from the legacy of the late Mrs Margaret McSparran, the lifeboat was named in memory of her brother, Dr. John Gerard McSparran.[6]
In 2015, the station received its latest Inshore lifeboat. The lifeboat was funded by the 'Pistol Benefit Fund', set up in memory of Frederick Pistol (Fred), a wartime refugee from Austria, and later Army Major, and his wife Theresa (Terry), a former concert pianist born in Westcliff-on-Sea, both keen sailors, and passionate supporters of the RNLI. At a naming ceremony in September 2015, attended by members of the Pistol family, following Fred's tradition of naming all his boats after his wife, the lifeboat was named Terry (D-783).[7]
The 200th anniversary of the RNLI, and the 30th anniversary of operations at Larne Lifeboat Station, were celebrated with an open day on 22 June 2024.[8]
On 21 October 2025, seven of the Larne crew attended the RNLI All-weather lifeboat centre in Poole for the official launch of their new Shannon-class lifeboat 13-58 Machiko Nancy (ON 1365). The lifeboat will head for Larne after sea-trials and final commissioning, and will enter service after crew training. Funded primarily by Michael Cameron, via the Cameron Family Charitable Foundation, the lifeboat is named in memory of the late wife of the donor, who died in 2020.[9]