The volunteer crew members were paged at 1pm on April 20 to assist a yacht that had lost its rudder off Beachy Head.
The charity’s Severn Class all-weather lifeboat, the David and Elizabeth Acland, was launched into force six winds and large waves.
The yacht was located two nautical miles south of Birling Gap, and the lifeboat reached the scene approximately 20 minutes after launching.
The crew established contact with the yacht’s crew and confirmed that there were six people on board.
After assessing the situation, it was decided that the best course of action would be to tow the yacht back to Newhaven Harbour.
David, one of the six people on the yacht, said: “Seeing the lifeboat approaching was a huge relief to myself, and everyone on board.
“We knew we would all be safe.
“Watching the skill of the crew manoeuvring the lifeboat in rough seas, to get in a position to throw the tow line, was impressive.”
He added: “Thank you to all the crew at Newhaven RNLI.
“Every crew member was very friendly, and checked in on us during the tow back to safety.
“When we reached safety, we gave the crew some Easter eggs we had on board, as a small thank you for coming to our aid.”
This was John Simcock’s first shout as coxswain, and Will Rowell’s first shout as a crew member.
John Simcock, volunteer coxswain, said: “This was my first shout as coxswain, so naturally had some initial nerves whilst heading to the lifeboat station.
“However, once launched, the training kicked in, and I felt confident with the task at hand, and confidence in the crew around me.”
He added: “Once we arrived on scene, I assessed the conditions and deemed them too rough to come alongside to extract the casualties from the yacht.
“After discussing with those on board, I decided the safest and most effective course of action to protect those on board the casualty vessel was to tow the yacht to a point of safety.
“We therefore secured a towline, and made our way back to Newhaven Harbour.”
The lifeboat returned to Newhaven Lifeboat Station at 4pm, with the casualty yacht berthed safely in Newhaven Harbour.
Will Rowell, volunteer crew member, said: “When the pager went off for the first time, the adrenaline kicked in.
“I recently passed out on the all-weather lifeboat, and this was my first shout on the Severn.
“When we were heading out of the harbour, I felt a mixture of nervousness, and excitement, all while trying to take it all in.”
“The yacht was pitching and rolling in the waves, and it was clear we needed to assist them.
“I was in awe of my fellow crew members’ skill and professionalism throughout the shout.
“It was an incredible feeling, being part of getting the casualty yacht and its crew to safety.”
Newhaven RNLI was established in 1803, and covers from Beachy Head to Brighton.
It is a modern afloat station and operates an all-weather Severn class lifeboat, and an inshore D class lifeboat.
The coxswain is the person in command of the all-weather lifeboat when at sea and is responsible for the safety of both the volunteer crew and any casualties on board.
Crucially, a lifeboat cannot launch without a qualified coxswain.
The Severn Class is the largest lifeboat in the RNLI fleet.
The Severn can take on the worst sea conditions and comes into her own on long offshore search and rescues.
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