Gladding-Hearn delivers pilot launch
Designed by C. Raymond Hunt & Associates, the all-aluminum pilot boat is 52.6 ft long overall and has a 17-ft beam and 4.8-ft draft.
With a top speed of 25 knots, it is powered by twin Volvo Penta D16 diesel engines, each delivering 651 bhp at 1,800 rpm, turning five-bladed NiBrAl propellers via ZF 500-1-A gearboxes.
Each engine has a two-circuit Fernstrum keel-cooling system recessed into extra heavy bottom plating for operation in ice.Volvo Penta’s EVC system is mounted at the control stations in the wheelhouse and at the transom.The vessel is fitted with a Humphree Interceptor automatic trim optimization system.
The wheelhouse is outfitted with five Stidd seats and a three-zone, diesel-fired Espar Hydronic 35 heater for the cabin, main deck, and handrails. The forward wheelhouse windows feature ¾-inch electrically-heated laminated glass for de-icing. Interior sound levels are approximately 78 dba.
At the transom is a winch-operated rotating davit over a recessed platform for pilot rescue operation.