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Eternal spring – work on new RFA ship allows sailors to view WW2 era vessel
9 December 2025
Beginning work on the first of their new class of support ships allowed Royal Fleet Auxiliary sailors to dip into the service’s past.
Personnel attending the steel cut for RFA Resurgent, the lead ship of three ammunition/stores/support vessels for the UK’s Carrier Strike Group, at Appledore in North Devon gave them the rare opportunity to visit one of the few former RFA ships still in existence.
SS Freshspring – previously RFA Freshspring – was one of a dozen Fresh-class vessels built for the fleet in the immediate aftermath of World War 2.
Similar in size to a tug and with a crew of just eight, the small craft were operated for a good 20 years, providing warships and other RFA vessels with fresh water for their crews and feed water for boilers should they require them.
Freshspring served extensively in Malta, and ended her naval career as a passenger transfer boat on the Clyde.
Plans to use her for fuel exploration as a civilian vessel feel through and so the ship was laid up on the Severn for decades until around ten years ago when a group of enthusiasts decided to restore her.
They’ve succeeded – today Freshspring serves as a floating museum and also educational facility for young people interested in engineering, just 1½ miles upstream the Torridge from the Appledore yard where Resurgent is being built.
The head of the RFA, Commodore Sam Shattock, and a small group of personnel accompanying him to Appledore, were shown around the museum piece by volunteers from the SS Freshspring Society.
Presenting his hosts with a commemorative coin, Commodore Shattock praised the volunteers’ “whose tireless commitment has not only preserved this unique piece of maritime history but are transforming her into an active educational and cultural asset.
“Their stewardship ensures that the legacy of the RFA, and the story of ships like Freshspring, will continue to inspire future seafarers for many years to come.”
For RFA Chief of Staff Chief Officer Tim Hill, the look around the old vessel “formed an elegant bridge between past and present, linking a heritage steamship that once served with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary with the next generation of technologically advanced support ships that will secure the future of naval operations.
“While the tools and technologies have evolved, the core values of service, support, and seamanship remain constant across generations.”