Operation ST200

“The sea shall not have them”

Our battle to save Britain’s much-loved marine heritage – our journey to save a rare 1940 RAF Seaplane Tender in time for the 2027 Dunkirk crossing.

The ST200

By the summer of 1940, the war against Germany had erupted and Dunkirk had fallen. The Battle of Britain raged over the English Channel.

More than the Spitfires, more than the Hurricanes, our most powerful defence was our pilots. Yet, even in high summer, life expectancy for an airman in the icy waters of the Channel was measured in minutes – and many, many pilots were downed.

The RAF had spent the 1930s developing the ST 200 Class Seaplane Tender. Lightweight, responsive and fast, these vessels were engineering masterpieces in miniature.

To a pilot adrift, the roar of a Seaplane Tender’s engines tearing across the horizon was the greatest sound on earth.

The History of the ST200

“This precious stone set in the silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall,
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands…”
William Shakespeare, Richard II

Phantom ST200 Tender

Meet Phantom

We do not yet know her official wartime operational number. We know she is an exceptionally rare survivor – an authentic 1940 ST 200 Class Seaplane Tender. Her sister ship is safely retired to the RAF Museum in Hendon.

Finding a vessel of this pedigree in a restorable condition is practically unheard of. No cliché is enough: one in a million, a needle in a haystack – this is an extraordinary find.

For now, stripped of her markings, she is known to us simply as ‘Phantom’. Powered by twin period-accurate Perkins S6M diesels, she is a masterclass in British wooden-hulled maritime engineering.

This autumn, she will be moved north to Doncaster – home of Structural Repairs’ manufacturing plant for ReInforcerX. As specialists in heritage asset restoration, we will use an arsenal of advanced, sensitive repair technologies to rescue her original timber and mechanicals.

Her history is a mystery we are actively uncovering, but her future is already secured.

Destination Dunkirk 2027

A vessel with this much pedigree does not belong static in a museum. She has an exhaustive refit ahead of her, but ‘Phantom’ has her sights set on the horizon.

Next year she will embark on her first major post-restoration mission: crossing the English Channel to participate in the Dunkirk commemorations. Taking a vintage wooden military boat back across those historic waters requires absolute precision and a deep respect for maritime conditions. It is a formidable challenge and a triumphant return to the open sea for a true wartime survivor.

This will be great.

This photograph HU 1137 comes from the collections of the Imperial War Museums., Public Domain, Link

Join Operation ST200

Restoring a piece of RAF history demands time, patience and an unrelenting dedication to historical accuracy. Add your name to the manifest to follow the forensic hunt for the hull number, track the engineering progress and receive exclusive restoration despatches directly from the boatyard.

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