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Displaying items by tag: Visit Due Irish Naval Base

#NavyNews -  A tour by the Prince of Wales of an Irish Naval Service patrol ship, to retrace steps of his ancestors in Cork and Kerry and be briefed on world-renowned conservation projects around Killarney are planned during his visit to the Republic next month.

It has emerged writes The Belfast Telegraph that the three-day visit was organised at the specific request of the Prince, who has for years wanted to visit a number of historic Cork and Kerry sites.

He will be accompanied by his wife, Camilla the Duchess of Cornwall for the visit, which is scheduled to begin in Cork on June 14.

The Belfast Telegraph has learned that Charles, who visited the Republic with Camilla in 2016, has specifically requested a tour of the historic Haulbowline Naval Base in Cork harbour.

It was formerly a strategically important dockyard of Britain's Royal Navy.

First fortified in 1602, not long after the Spanish Armada's failed invasion bid, Haulbowline Island is now the main base of the Irish Naval Service.

For more on the visit to the naval base located in lower Cork Habour click here.

Published in Navy

The Dragon was designed by Johan Anker in 1929 as an entry for a competition run by the Royal Yacht Club of Gothenburg, to find a small keel-boat that could be used for simple weekend cruising among the islands and fjords of the Scandinavian seaboard. The original design had two berths and was ideally suited for cruising in his home waters of Norway. The boat quickly attracted owners and within ten years it had spread all over Europe.

The Dragon's long keel and elegant metre-boat lines remain unchanged, but today Dragons are constructed using the latest technology to make the boat durable and easy to maintain. GRP is the most popular material, but both new and old wooden boats regularly win major competitions while looking as beautiful as any craft afloat. Exotic materials are banned throughout the boat, and strict rules are applied to all areas of construction to avoid sacrificing value for a fractional increase in speed.

The key to the Dragon's enduring appeal lies in the careful development of its rig. Its well-balanced sail plan makes boat handling easy for lightweights, while a controlled process of development has produced one of the most flexible and controllable rigs of any racing boat.