Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding wins pilot boat order

JANUARY 9, 2013 — Cape Fear Pilots Association, Southport, N.C., has ordered a second St. John's Class pilot boat from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding in Somerset, MA. The order marks a milestone for Gladding-Hearn. It will be the 400th boat built since the shipyard's founding in 1955. Delivery is planned for later this year.

The all-aluminum launch, with a deep-V hull designed by C. Raymond Hunt Associates, measures 52 feet overall, with a 17-foot beam and a 4.8-foot draft. It will be powered by twin Caterpillar C-18 diesel engines, each producing 479 bhp at 1800 rpm. Top speed is expected to reach 23 knots.

The EPA Tier 2-rated engines will turn 5-bladed Ni-Br-Al propellers via Twin Disc MG 5114A-7 Quick Shift gear boxes. A Northern Lights diesel generator will provide 9 kW of output.

The launch will feature wide side decks and be equipped with heated, exterior handrails to prevent ice formation and a boarding platform on the roof. At the transom is a winch-operated, rotating davit over the water-level, recessed platform for pilot rescue operations.

Interior accommodations will be cooled and heated by a pair of 16,000 Btu HVAC units.

The wheelhouse will have three Llebroc pilot seats and a helm seat. The forecastle will be outfitted with a settee, a galley, two bunks, and an enclosed head.