Buy a new Bristol Channel pilot cutter

One of the most versatile craft ever designed

The Bristol Channel pilot cutter, with its easily managed gaff rig, is instantly recognisable when you see it on the horizon.

Described as one of the "boats that built Britain", in an award-winning BBC documentary presented by sailing writer Tom Cunliffe, the design is so near perfect that it has endured centuries.

The pilot cutter developed from the need for a fast boat to take maritime pilots from the harbour to meet incoming large trading vessels in order to assist them into the harbour.

Thanks to Cockwells, you can now buy a brand new Bristol Channel pilot cutter with all the performance of a proven historic design with the benefits of modern luxury.

As most early pilots were also fisherman with a pilot's licence from the harbour, speed was of the essence, the boat had to be manoeuvrable enough to come alongside a square-rigged ship at sea and it had to be seaworthy enough for them to spend long hours, or days, waiting for the next ship to arrive.

Pilots were generally self-employed and the quickest transport meant the greatest income. As their fishing boats were heavy working boats and filled with fishing equipment, they needed a new type of boat.

Early boats were developed from single masted fishing cutter designs and twin masted yawls, and latterly into the specialist pilot cutter. These were effectively light-weight and overpowered single masted boats with large steeply angled keels, making them deep draft under power and shallow draft in lighter sail. The pilot cutters would spend weeks at sea in all conditions waiting for work which meant they not only had to be faster than their competitors but also capable of withstanding all the storms that the Atlantic Ocean could throw at them.

These cutters evolved with the fastest and strongest being replicated and improved upon until by the early 1900s steam took over and pilots turned their attention to other ways of powering their craft. Cockwells are pleased to be part of a pilot cutter revival. All the things that made pilot cutters great sea-going craft in their heyday, still apply today, indeed we believe the pilot cutter is among the greatest sea-boats for their size you will ever find.

For more information about pilot cutters in general, visit the Bristol Channel Pilot Cutters Owners Association