Lambert, John/Ross, Al Allied Coastal Forces of World War II. Volume 1: Fairmile Designs & US Submarine Chasers

The major contribution made by Coastal Forces to the Allied war effort has had surprisingly little coverage in the literature of the Second World War. Motor torpedo boats, PT boats, motor gunboats, launches and submarine chasers served with distinction throughout the War, and in every theatre. They performed invaluable service as patrol boats, convoy escorts, minelayers and minesweepers, harbour defence vessels, light landing craft, RAF rescue boats and transports for agents and clandestine missions. Allied Coastal Forces, now a recognised classic work and first published in 1990, remains the only publication to deal comprehensively - in words, photographs and drawings - with the technical detail of all these boats. Design, construction and subsequent development are all covered, and the builders, construction lists, fates and the technical data are given for each type. Separate sections cover armament and equipment, sea-going qualities and habitability. This first volume covers all the designs of the Fairmile Marine Company (including those craft built and equipped for Canada), together with the 72ft Harbour Defence Motor Launch and the US Navy 110ft subchaser. The authors, firmly established as the recognised authorities on small warships, unearthed a remarkable body of information now included in this major work, and their finely detailed drawings, redrawn form original builders' plans, offer an unparalleled view of all these remarkable designs. The new editions of their work will be welcomed by naval enthusiasts and modellers alike.

This reference book presents all the military coastal boats produced by the Fairmile Marine Company during the war, including the 72-foot harbour defence boat and the 110-foot submarine chaser of the U.S. Navy. Each of the small ship and boat units is described in terms of design, construction, further development during the war, whereabouts and technical data. Separate sections deal with the armament and other equipment of the coastal boats, their seaworthiness and handling. The detailed drawings document countless details of the boat types covered.