Police water-going vessels including underwater search units, boats and land-based support vehicles
Metropolitan Police
Targa 37 Police Boat – ‘Peter Kruger’
This modern police launch serves on the Thames, operated by the Metropolitan Police. Marked with POLICE livery and equipped for patrol and response duties on water.
Metropolitan Police
Tactical Support RIB
This rigid inflatable boat is crewed by officers for special response on the River Thames. Plain black with POLICE text, it can swiftly move for tactical operations.
Merseyside Police
Swift Trawler 42
The boat, named Consortium, is a converted Swift Trawler 42 and is the first one of its kind in the UK to be used by police. When launched in 2008, it was designed to be used by forces in Merseyside, Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and North Wales for high-visibility patrols of the regions waterways by the specialist underwater search and marine unit.
Metropolitan Police Service
Targa 32 Sir Robert Peel III, fleet number MP9
Northumbria Police
This 10m marine unit is based on the River Tyne and is used for river and sea operations. It can travel at yup to 45 knotts with up to 8 people on baord.
YX66 CJF
Yorkshire Regional Marine and Underwater Search
Peugeot Boxer
YX16 GVB
Yorkshire Regional Marine and Underwater Search
VW Amarok
Towing a rib
MOD Police
Boats named Condor and Harris, spotted navigating from the Clyde to the Forth.
YX64 HMU
Yorkshire and the Humber
Vauxhall Movano
Regional Marine Unit
Metropolitan Police launch in action on the River Thames
Cumbria Constabulary Cheetah Marine launch used on Lake Windermere
Royal Gibraltar Police Boat – Sir John Chapple
Four powerful motors propel the craft
The unit at speed
Gibraltar Defence Police Vessel – Sir Cecil Smith
A close look at the cabin
The boat in action
The boat in action
YX60 DNJ A Yorkshire and the Humber Land Rover Defender used for underwater searches
The rear
YJ08 BYB A Yorkshire and the Humber Mercedes truck used for underwater and specialist searches
The overhead view
A police marine unit looking for a missing person in a river
A second shot
The Met Police have a number of these black fast intervention ribs for use on the Thames.
A closer look.
Hampshire Constabulary operate this black Ribcraft eight-seater boat.
Dorset Police used this jet ski to patrol the Weymouth coastline during the Olympic events held there in 2012. It is fitted with small blue flashing lights.
A company called Air Sea Land Group have designed and built this demonstration police boat. It is designed to bridge the gap between smaller boats that can easily by towed behind a van and those that are larger and stay on the water all of the time. This boat has twin hulls that fold in to make it narrow enough to be towed on the roads. In the photograph, only one side has been folded in.
A look down the port side of the vessel showing the police markings.
WA56 GRF Accompanying a Devon & Cornwall Land Rover is police boat Solitaire.
Sister vessel Rosy in use.
A closer look at the high visibility wording on the vessels, showing the partnership between the police and the Environment Agency.
A third sister vessel called Mor Teg.
Commander is a twin-hulled vessel that is operated by Hampshire Police. Notice the crane on the rear to launch and retrieve the rib.
Ministry of Defence boat Excalibur is seen here moored in central London.
The rear view of the vessel and rib. Both have two blue flashing lights affixed.
Here a Met Police launch travels at speed on a demonstration run with various police staff aboard.
The rear view of the vessel without the additional passengers.
This boat is planned to be built by Lochin Marine for Hampshire. The computer generated image shows a catamaran called a Lochin SB1100 or Lochin SB1200 (11m or 12m). The actual boat should be ready by mid-2012.
This boat is planned to be built by Lochin Marine for Hampshire. The computer generated image shows a Lochin 366 Police Launch (11m) or Lochin 40 Police Launch (12m). The real boat should be ready by mid-2012.
Nina Mackay II is a launch used by the Met police on the River Thames. It carries blue and yellow battenburg markings and is assigned code MP7. Nina Mackay was a Met police officer that was killed by someone she was trying to arrest in 1997.
The Met Police operate this black rigid inflatable boat. It can carry 12 officers seated at high speed down the Thames. Notice the two blue multi-direction flashing LEDs on the rear framework.
Here a Hampshire Police launch is made to look like a toy by the dominating Queen Elizabeth cruise liner.
YJ10 ADU This is an Iveco Eurocargo that is run by West Yorkshire Police as an underwater and specialist search unit. It carries all of the necessary equipment and facilities for police divers.
The rear view showing the rear entry door. Small blue flashing leds are placed around the bodywork, as well as white scene lighting.
This Police boat is built by Mac Boats from New Zealand. Due to the unique construction of the hull, the boat is claimed to be virtually indestructible and unsinkable.
This is a Met Police boat MP1 Patrick Colquhoun. It is the largest type of launch that the service use and is seen here at its unit headquarters with the towers of Canary Wharf seen in the background. Patrick Colquhoun was the founder of the Thames River Police in 1798.
P160 PYW This land Rover Defender 90 is a 1996 vehicle that was still in used by the Met Police’s Marine Unit in 2009. It is fitted with a winch on the front and the standard Met livery.
This is a Strathclyde Police launch which was a familiar site on the Clyde before being sold. It was last spotted in Portishead, converted to a sight seeing boat.
This is a MOD Police launch called James Dalton spotted near Faslane.
This is a Ministry of Defence boat based in Scotland.
MP5 is a Metropolitan Police launch, seen here at their Wapping base.
LX51 GJG is a Vauxhall Brava 4×4 that is attached to the Met Police’s Marine Policing Unit. The vehicle carries the pre-2008 name; the Marine Support Unit.
The rear view of the same Brava, showing warning signs for the substances carried.
SV51 ETA This is a Ford Cargo that has been specially converted into an Underwater Search Unit for Grampian Police.
The rear view of the same truck, showing the access to the rear compartment.
This is police launch MP7 used by the Metropolitan Police on the River Thames.
YK55 EYT This is one of West Yorkshire Police’s underwater search units. Shown is a Land Rover Defender which behind the double cab has bespoke bodywork for storage. Special features of this vehicle are the metalwork on the bonnet, A-pillar mounted snorkel and small blue flashing lights on the front grille only.
The rear view of the same Land Rover. Two more very small blue flashing LEDs can be seen on the rear.
This river watch / river patrol vessel is operated by Cheshire Police and Chester City Council.
The stern view of the same river patrol boat. It is fitted with a Honda outboard motor. The mast has some blue plastic on top – this is not a blue light.
This vessel is a MOD Police boat Sword. It is used around the RN Clyde Naval Base at Faslane.
This orange RIB is used by North Wales Police in Port Dinorwic.
This is the Ministry of Defence’s police boat Sir Humphy Gale which is based at Portsmouth Naval Base.
This is a photograph of one of Hampshire Police’s launches on the Solent. This example is called Sir James Scott and it carries a similar livery to the rest of Hampshire’s land-going fleet. It is fitted with a double blue flashing light and its aerial identifier code is ‘MAR 3’.
A police officer in an orange Humber rigid inflatable boat watches out for approaching vessels while a colleague scours the river bed for evidence from a crime. The flag that is shown (reproduced below) alerts mariners to divers in the vicinity.
Two further police officers wait on the shore for news from the diver by radio.
The police diver surfaces with the remains of a mobile ‘phone that has been thrown from a bridge. The police examine it before bagging it up to be sent for laboratory analysis.
YJ53 ENL This Ford Iveco Tector truck is the underwater search unit for North Yorkshire Police, based at Fulford, York. This truck is a very tall 4×4, 16 ton monster, with three steps up into the cab. In the rear is storage for diving equipments as well as a kitchen and showers. The RIBs are towed by a separate vehicle. It is a vast improvement on its rusty 1990 predecessor which it replaced in spring 2004.
The above vehicle in use.
G176 YEF North Yorkshire’s underwater search unit, with trailer and boat. This converted bus carries all of the necessary equipment for the police divers as they practice in the River Ouse. This 1990 registration vehicle is quite rusty due to its work environment.
R260 LFV This photograph depicts a North Yorkshire Police Ford Explorer. It is towing a police RIB (rigid inflatable boat) with detachable engine. The boat was launched and used to retrieve a body from the River Ouse.
Here we have a rigid inflatable boat (RIB) photographed at North Yorkshire Police’s central area headquarters. It is only used occasionally, such as when there is flooding.
P568 JKY A South Yorkshire Police Mercedes Sprinter van underwater search unit (with boat trailer).
A collection of trucks used for underwater search equipment transportation. From left to right are: a rare 4×4 Ford Transit with raised suspension, a West Yorkshire Mercedes Sprinter, A Northumbria Police Ford and a West Yorkshire Iveco. They have congregated at Northumbria Police’s Jarrow Marine Unit for a simulated rescue at near-by Tynemouth.
These two views shows the Lincolnshire and South Yorkshire vehicles. There are no standard colours, schemes, liveries, vehicles or equipment carried. Each force decides what it needs or can afford. Some areas do not have such services and have to draft in neighbouring force’s underwater search officers if they are needed.
The rear view. Inset: a close up of the side livery.
G176 YEF This is the Underwater Search Unit for North Yorkshire Police, pictured in 2000. This ageing vehicle is more like a minibus than a van, and is used not just in the N.Yorks. county but also in neighbouring counties where such units are unavailable.
The side-on view.