#NewPilotBoats – According to Milford Haven Port Authority, three of their new pilot boats will be named ‘St Brides’, ‘St Govans’ and ‘St Davids’. The names follow a public competition which attracted almost one hundred entries.

Currently the vessels are being built by Mainstay Marine Solutions at neighbouring Pembroke Port on the Milford Haven estuary, the largest in Wales and one of the deepest natural harbours in the world.

The new boats are designed to be used extensively in heavy weather, capable of operating in swells up to 5 metres in wave height.

Members of the public were asked to submit suggestions for the pilot vessel names and then staff at the Pembrokeshire port voted for their favourites.

The winning names were submitted by Captain Simon Harries who is Operations Manager at Astro Offshore PTE Ltd, an offshore and maritime chartering and brokerage company headquartered in Dubai. He has a long history with the Milford Haven Waterway and is a member of Neyland Yacht Club. Captain Harries said “I chose the names as they are the areas of Pembrokeshire I love most.”

Harbourmaster at the Port of Milford Haven, Bill Hirst, commented “We were delighted at how many entries we received and had a tough job selecting just three. St Brides, St Govans and St Davids have great local relevance and we’ll be proud to put them on the water when they come into service next year.”

The pilot vessels will be driven by the Port’s ‘Storm Heroes’. The marine team found fame on Channel 4’s documentary earlier this year when they were filmed in extreme storms with winds gusting up to 100mph.

A video of one of the launches taking a pilot out to the tanker ‘British Robin’ at St Anne’s Head in January 2015 can be viewed above.

Captain Harries will be invited to take part in a trip on one of the pilot boats he has named when he visits his family in Pembrokeshire next summer.