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Shannon Launch and Recovery System (SLARS)
The Supercat was developed by the RNLI and Supacat Ltd to build a Launch and Recovery System (L+RS) for its new 13-metre Shannon-class lifeboat. The remit from the RNLI was to provide a L+RS system that was capeable of launching its lifeboats at stations that do not have easy access to slipways and have to negotiate shinglebeaches or steep gradients to the sea. The result was a 22-metre four-track computerized tractor and carriage system that has the capacity to turn the boat 360-degrees enabling bow-first launching. The prototype conducted trials in 2010 and has now been brought up to production standards. It is expected that around30 ish of the vehicles will be procured at an approx cost of £1m each
Built by Supacat in Devon with Clayton Engineering in Powys coming on-line from SC-07 producing some examples and then alternating with Penman Engineering of Dumfries from SC-T13. But with Penman goin into Receivership in 2016 a return to Supacat (SC Innovations) was made in March 2017.
Production Details
| Supercat No. | Bldr | Tractor No. | Carriage No. | Reg No. | Base/Comments |
| SC1 | Supercat | SC-t01 | SC-C01 | WF13ZNJ | Trials 2011. Relief Fleet 2013 |
| SC2 | Supercat | SC-T02 | SC-C02 | WG13AKZ | Relief Fleet 2012. |
| SC3 | Supercat | SC-T03 | SC-C03 | HK63BVW | Dungeness 2014 |
| SC4 | Supercat | SC-T04 | SC-C04 | HF14HFK | Relief Fleet 2014. |
| SC5 | Supercat | SC-T05 | SC-C05 | HF14HLJ | Relief 2014. |
| SC6 | Supacat | SC-C06 | SC-C06 | HF14HLK | Hoylake,Merseyside.DD 06/2014 Named The Roland Ho |
| SC7 | Clayton. | SC-T07 | SC-C07 | HF64CVG | Ilfracombe, North Devon. 2015. Named June and Gordon hadfield. |
| SC-8 | Supacat | SC-T-08 | SC-C08 | HF15FRX | St. Ives, Cornwall. Delivered 08/2015. Officially named Kenneth George Fulford 15/05/16. |
| SC-9 | Supacat | SC-T09 | SC-C09 | HF65HUA | Relief fleet. Delivered Jan 2016. On Station Bridlington, W Yorks 12/11/17. To Relief 23/10/18. |
| SC-10 | Clayton | SC-T10 | SC-C10 | HF65HPJ | Scarborough, North Yorkshire. Delivered 12/2015. Named "The Cairns". |
| SC-11 | Supacat | SC-T11 | SC-C11 | HJ16JVU | At Skegness 19/ 10/16 Named \fred Henl.. |
| SC-12 | Supacat | SC-T12 | SC-C12 | HJ16JRU | Delivered to RNLI 07/2016. For Selsey, West Sussex. Officially named Miss Eileen Beryl Phillips 21/09/17. |
| SC-13 | SCI | SC-T13 | SC-C13 | HF67DSO | Lytham st Annes. Delivered 13/01/18 To Relief 2019.. |
| SC-14 | Clayton | SC-T14 | SC-C14 | HF67CAV | LLandudno, Conwy. Delivered 07/09/17. |
| SC-15 | SCi | SC-T15 | SC-C15NP | LK18FVU | Bridlington, West York. Arrived 23/10/18, 1st non-powered.s |
| C-16 | Clayton | SC-C16 | SC-C16 | HF18DYS | Hastings, East Sussex. Delivered 18/08/18. Named Richard and mark Colton 27/04/19. |
| SC-17 | SCI | SC-T17 | SC-C17 NP | HX64DXH | Clougher Head, Co. Louth, ROI. 2019. Arrived 30/04/19 |
| SC-18 | Clayton | SC-T18 | SC-C18 | HF68DDL | Relief Fleet, arrived Barmouth 08/01/19 for training. |
| SC-19 | SCI | SC-T19 | SCC-19NP | HF65hUa | Released from SCI 01/2020. to Seahouses on trials 01/09/20. Named David Cooper". |
| SC-20 | Clayton | SC-T20 | SC-20NP | HF19EHH | Arrived Rhyl 13/08/ Named Violet Rose.19. |
| SC-21 | SCI | SC-T21 | SC-C21 | HF20EBD | Relief Wells, Norfolk. |
| SC-22 | Claytonn | SC-T22 | SCC-22 | 1135MAN | Peel, IOM. Delivered 07/2021. |
| SC-23 | SCI | SC-T23 | SC-C23 | SCC-23 | Allocated for Ilfracombe??? |
| SC-24 | Clayton | SCT-23 | SC-C24 | HF70EBK | Pwlleli Delivered 04/2021 |
| SC-25 | SCI | SC-T25 | NP | ||
| SC-26 | Clayton | ||||
SC-T01 seen at Poole on 11/07/13 (Photo N. Rush)
The Relief Fleets SC-T02 at Poole on 13/11/14 (Photo N. Rush)
Relief Fleets SC-T02 pictured on 24/09/13 (Photo Chris Brownlow)Clayton
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Pictured at Dungeness is SC-T03 on 20/02/14 (Photo via LBES)
SC-T04 seen at Exmouth 19/03/14 (Photo Courtesy RNLI/Mike Powell)
The Relief Fleets' SC-T05 at Poole 17/07/14 on its way to Dungeness (Photo N. Rush)
SC-T05 of the Relief Fleeet seen on 15/02/15 (Photo Chris Brownlow)
The Hoylake-based SC-T06 at her station on 09/12/14 (Photo Courtesy Hoylake LBS)
Ilfracombe-based SC-T07 seen on 06/06/15 (Photo Martin Fish)
SC-T-08 at Ilfracombe on 04/09/15 for training (Photo Ilfracombe LBS)
SC-T08 pictured at St. Ives on 11/11/17 (Photo Chris Brownlow)
SC-T08 at St. Ives on 26/10/15 (Photo St. Ives LBS)
SC-T09 at Dungeness on 02/07/16 (Photo David Carter)
SC-T10 pictured at Clayton Engineering on 16/10/15 for Scarborough (Photo Courtesy David Coxill)
SC-T11 HJ16JVU seen at Skegness on 24/10/16 (Photo credit Stephen Willmer)
SC-T12 HJ16JRU at Lytham St. Annes on 08/07/16 (Photo M. Fish)
SC-T13 seen at Lytham St. Annes on 25/02/18 (Photo Chris Brownlow)
SC-T14 hF67CAV seen at LLandudno on 29/09/17 )Photo Dave James)
SCT15 lK15FVU seen at Bridlington on 17/11/18 (Photo M. Fish)
SC-T16 HF18dYS pictured at Hastings on 13/10/18 (Photo Kevin Cleaver)
SC-T17 pictured at Clougher Head on 10/06/19 (Photo Jeff Nagle)
SC-T18 at Barmouth on 10/03/19 (Photo M. Fish)
SC-T20 pictured at Rhyl in 2019. (Photo M. Fish)
e-mail: lifeboatsonline@yahoo.co.uk