Fraserburgh RNLI Lifeboat Station Open Boat Day 2026

Fraserburgh RNLI volunteers will be on hand to give guided tours of Fraserburgh lifeboat and station on the dates which co-incide with the Aberdeenshire Open Doors Days Event

‘The John Buchanan Barr arrived at 16.21 on 19 April to a huge welcome and after a period of intense training was placed on service on 30 May,’ said full time Fraserburgh Coxswain/Mechanic Vic Sutherland.

‘We were hoping we’d be able to show people around the lifeboat at our annual Lifeboat Open Day in early June but unfortunately we had to cancel that event at short notice due to unforeseen circumstances. We really wanted to give our supporters an opportunity to look around the lifeboat before winter set in. The open lifeboat days on Saturday and Sunday will be without the usual stalls and entertainment we normally have on our open days but we’ll have tea, coffee and refreshments available at the station.’

The open day on Saturday will close at 2pm in readiness for a Blessing of the Lifeboat Ceremony taking place at 3pm which will be led by the new station chaplain Rev Mike Newlands to which all will be made welcome.

The programme for the Blessing contains a lot of interesting facts and information about RNLB John Buchanan Barr 16-21 Tamar Class lifeboat which will be of interest to all Fraserburgh Lifeboat supporters.

The Tamar lifeboat was the first to be fitted with an integrated electronic Systems and Information Management System (SIMS), allowing the crew to operate the all-weather lifeboat from the safety of their shock-absorbing seats.

When crashing through the waves, the Tamar’s pioneering seat design absorbs most of the energy on impact, reducing the strain on crew members’ backs.

The Tamar is designed to be launched from a slipway, her mast and aerials can be lowered to fit inside a boathouse, and she can also lie afloat as she does at Fraserburgh.

Tamar class lifeboats gradually replaced some of the RNLI’s older Tyne class lifeboats that had reached the end of their operational lives as part of the charity’s plans for a faster and more efficient 25-knot all-weather lifeboat fleet.

Following a tradition of naming modern RNLI lifeboats after rivers, the Tamar is named after the Tamar River, which is 50 miles long and forms a natural boundary between Devon and Cornwall.

This lifeboat has been on service since 9 September 2011 and has spent 2,475 hours at sea in search and rescue activity launching 176 times, aiding 278 people and saving four lives.

Having spent a significant period as Portpatrick Lifeboat Station's ALB, she entered the relief fleet in February 2024 and has served many stations until being placed on full service as Fraserburgh ALB on 30 May 2026.

She was paid for from a legacy from Mrs Catherine Barr in memory of her husband Dr John Buchanan Barr in 2011 and arrived in Fraserburgh in April 2026.

John Buchanan Barr will be blessed at Fraserburgh RNLI Lifeboat Station at 3pm on Saturday 19 September 2026, to which all are welcome, and will follow an Open Lifeboat Day where visitors will be given the opportunity to look around the lifeboat.

In case of inclement weather the Blessing ceremony will take place at the North Fishmarket.

Local visitors and supporters are advised to check RNLI Fraserburgh Lifeboat Facebook page for any updates or changes due to unforeseen circumstances.

Notes to Editors

• Fraserburgh Lifeboat Station has a proud history of saving lives at sea, operating since 1858 (with lifeboat operations recorded locally from 1805)
• The Tamar class all weather lifeboat John Buchanan Barr (16-21) replaced the station's long-serving Trent class all weather lifeboat Willie and May Gall (14-34) in spring 2026.
• Thirteen Fraserburgh Lifeboatmen have died in three separate tragedies in 1919, 1953 and 1970.
• The 140,000 life saved by the RNLI since records began was recorded in June 2012 when Fraserburgh Lifeboat rescued a kitesurfer who had been entangled in his lines and was being dragged out to sea.

RNLI Media Contacts

For further information, please contact:

Billy Watson, Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer for Fraserburgh RNLI, [email protected]

Richard Smith, RNLI Regional Communications Manager for Scotland, 07826 900639, [email protected]

Martin Macnamara, RNLI Regional Communications Lead for Scotland, 07920 365929, [email protected]

RNLI Press Office, 01202 336789, [email protected]

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,700 lives.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.

Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries

Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.