The Coast Guards. Part-One.

Multi-Role.

Nearly every nation has a rescue service of one kind or another, from being embedded within their police or military. Some are a separate division dedicated to its own provisions of equipment and personnel.

We have mountain rescue, coastguards, Royal Life boat institutions (R.N.L.I.) and many others. Each one plays a specific role on water, in the air and underground. Some fire service units are equipped in this way. There is close cooperation between all the emergency services, during storms, earthquakes, major incidents-accidents and terrorists attacks.

The sea borne operators in the U.S. double up with their vessels to assist narcotics enforcement, apart from search and rescue. This is becoming more so now across the globe with more navies having to deal with people smuggling and ship hijacking.

Blade Runners. Part-One.

An Introduction to the Hydrofoil.

This is perhaps the most prolific ship design that has ever been conceived, to lift up a weight on a blade. today we associate blade running with athletics and that is an amazing feat of engineering in its own right.

The era of the Hydrofoils were the 1950's and it seems there was great competition across the globe to build and have one. Italy, Russia and the United State of America, took full opportunity to build them in all sizes and sleekness of design. 

Bolivian Arrow, 14-ton, 40 seater, Russian Burevestnik, 41-67-tom 130-150 seat river ferry, Italian RHS 70, 32-ton, 71 seat passenger ferry and the U.S Flagstaff 1 (PHG-1) US Coastguard 67.5-ton, with a 40knot speed.

Today they are not as popular, as they once were but they remain in operation in several countries as a novelty design concept.