During the Second World War, the danger of losing large numbers of aircrew forced to ditch in the seas around the British Isles was very real, resulting in the creation of the Royal Air Force Sea Rescue Service, operating under the motto ‘The sea shall not have them’. Using vessels designed by the British Powerboat Company and utilising racing boat technology, this service was all about speed, with the Type Two 63ft HSL ‘Whaleback’ being arguably their most distinctive craft. Powered by three 24ltr Napier Sea Lion engines, these boats must have sounded magnificent and it’s no wonder they were known as the Spitfires of the sea.

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