It has been replaced operationally by the D-class (IB1), but many are still used as part of the relief fleet, as boarding boats for the larger classes of lifeboat[1] and by the RNLI Flood Rescue Team.

[2] For more than 60 years the D-class has served as the workhorse of the RNLI Inshore Lifeboat (ILB) fleet.

The D-class was specifically designed as a light and highly manoeuvrable rapid response craft, especially suited to close shore work.

The D-class lifeboat consists of two sponsons, together housing seven inflatable segments intersected by baffles.

The very nature of its work required a swift response, and the D-class can normally be afloat within five minutes of the pagers going off.