- For other types of "launch" see Launch (boat){{Infobox ship
|infobox caption= |Ship image=
|Ship caption=
|module=
Class overview
Builders:
ElcoOperators:
Royal NavyBuilt:
1915-1918
In commission:
1915-1920sCompleted:
580
|module2=
General characteristics ML.1-50 seriesType:
Motor launchDisplacement:
34 tLength:
75ftPropulsion:
Petrol engineSpeed:
19 kn (35 km/h)Complement:
8Armament:
1 × 13-pdr
later replaced with 1 × 3-pdr
depth charges
|module3=
General characteristics ML.51-550 seriesType:
Motor launchDisplacement:
37 tLength:
86ftPropulsion:
Petrol engineSpeed:
19 kn (35 km/h)Complement:
6Armament:
1 × 13-pdr
later replaced with 1 × 3-pdr
depth charges
|module4=
General characteristics ML.551-580Type:
Motor launchDisplacement:
37 tLength:
80ftSpeed:
19 kn (35 km/h)Complement:
8Armament:
1 × 13-pdr
later replaced with 1 × 3-pdr
|}
A motor launch (ML) is a small military vessel in British navy service. It was designed for harbour defence and submarine chasing or for armed high speed air-sea rescue.
Although small by naval standards, it was larger than the preceding Coastal Motor Boats of 40 and 55 ft length. The first motor launches entered service in the First World War. These were 550 80-foot-long (24 m) vessels built by the US Elco company for the Admiralty receiving the designations ML-1 to ML-550. They served between 1916 and the end of the war with the Royal Navy defending the British coast from German submarines.
Royal Norwegian Navy motor launches off Dover during the Second World War
Types[]
| Type | Length | Weight | Speed | Built | Total | Lost | Designed for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairmile A motor launch | 110 ft | 57 tons | 25 knots (46 km/h) | 1939 | 12 | Anti-submarine, later minelaying | |
| Fairmile B motor launch | 112 ft (34 m) | 85 tons | 20 knots (37 km/h) | 1940-45 | 1,284 | Submarine chasing, many later roles including air-sea rescue | |
| Harbour defence motor launch | 72 ft (22 m) | 54 tons | 12 knots (22 km/h) | 1940-45 | 486 | 47 | Defending harbours; anti-submarine |
| RAF Type 2 Whaleback | 63 ft (19 m) | 21.5 tons | 36 knots (67 km/h) | 1940-42 | 70 | Rescuing downed aircrew, particularly in the English Channel |
Post-war, many motor launches were taken on as pleasure boats, a number of them are on the National Register of Historic Vessels.
See also[]
- Motor gun boat
- Motor torpedo boat
- Coastal Forces of the Royal Navy
- R boat - German WWII equivalent
- Dark-class fast patrol boat
References[]
External links[]
- UK National Register of Historic Vessels
- Naval Museum of Manitoba
- Juno Beach website
- A Short History of HMS St Christopher. Royal Navy Coastal Forces training base, mainly for MLs
- Stoker Harold Siddall Royal Navy, his service in ML.1030 and capture in Crete 1941
The original article can be found at Motor Launch and the edit history here.