Funding will help get HMS Medusa ready for the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant on June 3
A boat that was involved in the D-Day landings is undergoing the final stages of a six-year restoration project with help from boat insurance company Haven Knox-Johnston.
The last-minute funding effort is being made to get HMS Medusa, which was involved in the landings on Omaha Beach and is the last operational boat of her class, ready for the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant on June 3.
The final elements in her restoration include the provision of lifejackets and a liferaft and the installation of other safety kit.
The major part of her restoration was completed at The Maritime Workshop in Gosport, mainly funded by grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The restoration was entirely undertaken by volunteers.
Haven Knox-Johnston stepped in to help out with the final stages because the boat won this year’s Haven Academy Award for Boat Restoration, an annual prize that provides up to £3,000 in funding.
Alan Watson, chairman of The Medusa Trust, said: “To win this Haven Academy Award is great news and will help us realise our goal of seeing Medusa taking part in the Thames Jubilee Pageant.
“The plan is to sail from Gosport up the Channel around south-east England and up the Thames to join the flotilla. It’ll be a proud day!”
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