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Influx of new birds on the Dart spurs on naval leaders of tomorrow
28 March 2025
Twitchers on the Dart are used to seeing kingfishers, goosanders, ospreys and occasionally little egrets in the summer.
From now on, expect to see cormorant, skua, gannet and tern too. Frequently.
Not some sudden migration of seabirds to the south Devon coast, but eight 15-metre jet boats bearing their name to mark the 120th anniversary of the Royal Navy’s most famous training establishment.
Senior officers at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth decided that numbers one through eight were somewhat uninspired – and uninspiring – for its octet of training craft which are on the Dart daily.
The Vahana OTBs – Officer Training Boats – were introduced three years, modern replacements for the long-serving blue and white picket boats which chugged up and down the Dart since the 1960s, teaching several generations of rookie naval officers the art of navigation and naval leadership.
Jet powered – capable of speeds up to 40 knots, but limited on the river to a sedate six knots – the Vahanas have simply been numbered one through eight to date.
They serve as a combination of floating classroom and trainers for cadets with the updated systems aboard – such as electronic charting – mirroring what junior officers can expect when they go to sea with the Fleet.
From Jack Speak, our traditions and our history, the Royal Navy has always appreciated a name, so I am thrilled to name all the Officer Training Boats – and it’s another great occasion for the college’s 120th anniversary.
“For the Officer Cadets to gain some real Royal Navy experience and pride of ownership we have renamed the training boats from numbers to seabirds, as individual names will embody their lived experience and give them ‘dits’ to spin for the future,” explained River Officer WO1 (Sea) Wayne ‘Rattzz’ Rattenbury.
A team from Babcock’s small boats maintenance team crafted wooden name boards and in the presence of Captain Andrew Bray, the College’s Commanding Officer, Cormorant, Guillemot, Razorbill, Kittiwake, Fulmar, Skua, Gannet and Tern were formally unveiled.
“From Jack Speak, our traditions and our history, the Royal Navy has always appreciated a name, so I am thrilled to name all the Officer Training Boats – and it’s another great occasion for the college’s 120th anniversary,” Captain Bray said.
The first task of the newly-named flock of seabirds was to ferry staff and cadets across the Dart to minehunter HMS Cattistock which was moored in the river for a few days while taking a break from shadowing Russian vessels past the UK.