RNLB Sir William Hillary (ON 725)
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Sir William Hillary |
| Owner | RNLI |
| Ordered | 1 |
| Builder | John I. Thornycroft & Company |
| Cost | £18,430 |
| Laid down | September 1928 |
| Christened | 10 July 1930 |
| Completed | November 1929 |
| In service | 1930 |
| Fate | Sunk 1980 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Fast motor lifeboat |
| Displacement | 27 tons |
| Length | 64 ft (20 m) |
| Beam | 14 ft (4.3 m) |
| Draught | 5 ft 1 in (1.55 m) |
| Installed power | 2 Thorneycroft 375bhp petrol engines |
| Propulsion | Twin screw |
| Speed | 17.25 kn (31.95 km/h) |
| Range | 94 nmi (174 km) at 12 kn (22 km/h) |
| Crew | 7 |
RNLB Sir William Hillary (ON 725) was a fast motor lifeboat operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) from Dover Lifeboat Station, England. It was specially designed to attend aircraft crashes in the English Channel, but in its 10 years at Dover it did not rescue anyone from an aircraft. It was operated by the Royal Navy during World War II and then sold, being used as a motor cruiser until it sank in 1980.