Designed by Fairmile Marine, Surrey
Based in Cobham, the “Fairmiles” were designed for rapid wartime fabrication. One of the first truly “flat-packed” boats, plywood frame kits were despatched to UK and allied boatyards all over the world, to be “double-diagonally” planked (ML357 is built from Mahogany) in locally available timber.
Normally manned by a crew of 16 (2 officers and 14 non-commissioned), they were deployed by the Royal Navy for a wide variety of wartime roles, such as troop carriers, anti-submarine duties, fast motor gunboats and rescue missions.
Due to their relatively fragile construction, ML’s were were easily damaged in action and the Royal Navy deemed them as somewhat “disposable”, with a life expectancy of only five years!
Original Blueprints:
Fairmile Patrol Boat “Type B”
Some Fairmile boats, including ML357 were built in Cairo and launched from the banks of the Nile for the Royal Navy (Image: Courtesy of The Imperial War Museum, 1942)
ML357 was constructed by the Anglo-American Nile Tourist Company in 1942 (Image: Courtesy of The Imperial War Museum, 1942)
Fast & Highly Manoeuvrable
Being relatively small (112ft) and with a shallow draft (4 ft 10), the Fairmiles could access “hard-to-get” locations and in the case of ML357; the shallow rocky coastlines and inlets of the occupied Greek Islands and Eastern Mediterranean.
Most Fairmile boats were powered by two American-made V12 650 bhp Hall-Scott Defender petrol engines.
Specifications:
Displacement: 85 tons
Length: 112 ft (34 m)
Beam: 18 ft 3 in (5.56 m)
Draft: 4 ft 10 in (1.47 m)
Propulsion: Two 650 bhp Hall-Scott Defender petrol engines
Speed 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Range: 1,500 miles at 12 knots (22 km/h, 14 mph)
Armour:
1 x QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss Gun
1 x twin 0.303” machine guns
12 x depth charges
Some later ML’s were also fitted with:
1 x QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss Gun
1 x twin 0.303” machine guns
1 x “ Bofors”40mm gun
1 x Oerlikon 20mm cannon