Rich Jones Qualifies as D Class Lifeboat Helm at Looe RNLI

Volunteers at Looe RNLI have congratulated crew member Rich Jones after he qualified as a helm on the station’s D Class inshore lifeboat.

The assessment took place on the evening of Wednesday 11th March 2026 in Looe Bay, where Rich completed the final stage of a process that follows years of training with the RNLI.

Assessment Exercise in Looe Bay

Rich Jones was joined on the charity’s D Class inshore lifeboat Ollie Naismith II by crewmates Jonty and Mark, along with RNLI assessor and trainer Ollie George.

The exercise was designed to test Rich’s ability to command both an incident and the lifeboat, along with his navigation skills and knowledge of search, rescue and emergency procedures.

Rich described how the assessment unfolded.

‘The assessment started around 6.30pm with a tasking to investigate reports of two persons in the water after a small rib was taking on water behind Looe Island. With darkness falling crew grabbed the night bag containing search lights and night vision equipment, before launching the charity’s D Class inshore lifeboat Ollie Naismith II. Leaving the harbour, I asked Jonty to enter the last known coordinates into the chart plotter and we arrived quicky on scene. The incident soon turned into a search for two missing people believed to be on the boat, with Rich requesting additional support from Looe’s Atlantic 85 Sheila and Dennis Tongue II, which had been launched on exercise around 7.15pm. During the assessment and on our way back to the station assessor / trainer Ollie threw some emergencies into the scenario for me and the crew to deal with, finally returning to station after more than two hours at sea.’

📷Rich Jones and crew preparing the D Class ILB Ollie Naismith II for launch - Photo credit RNLI / Ian Foster

Years of Training

A helm on a RNLI inshore lifeboat is the volunteer crew member who takes command during all aspects of an operation including launching, being at sea and recovery.

When taking the helm, Rich Jones will be responsible for the safety of the crew and casualties, and for making critical decisions during rescues.

Before the practical assessment, Rich completed a written exam testing navigational skills, seamanship and search patterns. The assessment in Looe Bay required him to put that theory into practice.

During the debrief, trainer Ollie George congratulated Rich after confirming he had successfully passed.

Rich said:

‘I would like to say a big thank you to my crew Jonty and Mark, crew on the Atlantic 85, shore crew and Launch Authorities who gave up their evening for my assessment. I would also like to thank other members of our crew who have put in so much time to help me qualify as a helm’.

📷Launching the D Class ILB Ollie Naismith II with Rich Jones at the helm - Photo credit RNLI / Ian Foster

Congratulations from the Station

Clive Palfrey, Looe RNLI’s Lifeboat Operations Manager, also praised the achievement.

‘We all congratulate Rich who has passed out as a fully qualified D Class helm after so much hard training, and I also thank all the crew and trainers who have spent much time involved with his training, a real joint effort from the station’.

📷RNLI assessor / trainer Ollie George (right) congratulating Rich Jones (left) by the D Class ILB Ollie Naismith II - Photo credit RNLI / Ian Foster