Bustler-Class Naval Tug (Minic Ships 810)
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Arch Two , Area 18 1960s |
A grey 1:1200 diecast metal model of a large, heavy-duty naval Bustler-Class Fleet Tug, modelled on a set of eight rescue tugs built in 1942, typified by the famous tug "Turmoil". This is part of the Tri-Ang Minic range produced between 1959 and 1964.
Triang Catalogue Number: M810
1960 catalogue description:
M 810 Fleet tugs of the Bustler Class. 1,800 tons displacement (1,100 tons gross), 205 feet long. Speed 15 knots. Fine looking craft, some of which have been sold to, or are on charter to, commercial firms. Among these is the well-known "TURMOIL". Length 1½ inches (3.8 cm).
The "Turmoil"
The Turmoil achieved international fame thanks to an ongoing news story on the ongoing attempted rescue of the "Flying Enterprise" that mesmerised the public for a fortnight over the 1951 Christmas holidays, from Christmas Day into the New Year. The captain of the Flying Enterprise refused to leave the ship until the last possible moment, and and the attending tugboats made dangerous and heroic efforts to rescue the ship and haul it to safety that were above and beyond the normal call of duty, resulting in a series of gripping newsreels, photographs and newspaper stories, and some of the people involved eventually being decorated.
A later conspiracy theory that emerged as to why the crew and tug crews had been so incredibly determined to try to save the ship revolved around a set of Zirconium rods needed for the United States Navy's first nuclear submarine, which may or may not have secretly been stowed onboard the Flying Enterprise without being listed on the cargo manifest.
External links
- Obituary: Kenneth Dancy, First Mate of the Turmoil (telegraph.co.uk)
- Rescue Tugs - The Untold Story (maydaytugsofwar.com)
- Model of The Bustler in National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street (henryrobb.wordpress.com)
- Plans for Bustler-Class C58 Tug, "Turmoil" (sarikhobbies.com)
- Admiralty Tug / Second World War Tugs (wikipedia.org)
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