When Luke Bishop came to visit RNLI Rye Harbour on March 4, 2018 and talked about his experience on the Atlantic 85, little did he know that by 2022 he would have become a helm at that station.
Back then he was part of the crew at one of the busiest RNLI stations in the country, RNLI Tower lifeboat station, and Luke said after his visit, “I really enjoyed my visit to Rye Harbour station. It was interesting to see how an Atlantic 85 operates, and whilst there is a lot of familiar kit on board, it’s still a very different boat from the E Class at Tower. Recovering onto the trailer was a new experience; good to see all the crew and the tractor driver working so well together to recover the boat safely.”
Luke joined the team at Rye Harbour in August 2019 and quickly began passing his modules for boat crew. Having gained passes in everything he moved on to his designate helm plan and on Friday, July 8 he passed out as helm and joins the team of five helms at the Harbour.
Paul Taylor, assessor and trainer for the south, came to the harbour to carry out the rigorous assessment. He commented afterwards, “Luke did really well today with good all-round safety elements on board and excellent commanding and leadership skills in evidence. A well-deserved pass and I was pleased to shake Luke’s hand at the end of his debriefing and wish him well. It is good to see the helms strengthened at Rye Harbour by another good competent, professional crew member.”
Tim Dickinson, helm at the station, added, “I am thrilled that Luke has passed out as helm. It requires hard work and dedication, both of which Luke has displayed since he joined us at Rye Harbour. Luke was an asset to the station as soon as he turned up, due to his previous experience at Tower and his history of sailing. He is a pleasure to work with, always professional and very easy to get along with. We are lucky to have him.”
Image Credits: Kt bruce .