Coastguard and Lifeboat Operational Progression

Coastguard and Lifeboat operations combine shore response, command, specialist rescue, vessels, aircraft, trailers, towing vehicles, launch geography and cross-service patient handling. The safe planning unit is therefore the complete response chain rather than an isolated vehicle or boat.

Evidence boundary

Verified statements reproduce current canonical mission, vehicle, infrastructure, personnel and training records. Fleet sizes, reserve floors, placement patterns and commissioning sequences are recommendations. Unpublished station economics, capacities, course durations, launch behaviour and unlock thresholds remain unknown.

Current evidence baseline: 28 July 2026.

Command doctrine

Use this order when expanding:

1. Shore response first — maintain CRV and common-support coverage before adding rare maritime specialists.
2. Vessel class by mission evidence — ILB, ALB, rescue watercraft, inland boat and hovercraft are not interchangeable.
3. Trailer and towing chain together — a stored trailer without a compatible staffed tow vehicle is not dispatch-ready.
4. Training before specialist activation — command, mud, rope, flood, lifeboat and hovercraft capability requires the published education where known.
5. Geography before duplication — place stations and launch systems against usable road, coast, estuary, harbour, river, lake and ocean access.
6. Cross-service reserve before generator growth — coastal missions may add Fire, Ambulance, HART, Police, SAR and patient-transport pressure.

Open Mission Lookup · Open Concurrent Fleet Planner · Compare Resources

Maritime response chain

Coastal, flood or ocean mission pressure
                ↓
Shore response and command
                ↓
Specialist mud / rope / flood capability
                ↓
Correct vessel, aircraft or trailer class
                ↓
Compatible towing and trained personnel
                ↓
Patient / prisoner handling and cross-service support
                ↓
Return to launch-ready regional reserve

A resource may be at the correct station but still unavailable because its crew, trailer, tow vehicle, launch access or partner service is committed elsewhere.

Verified shore-response contracts

Resource	Verified role	Verified cost and crew	Building / training	Towing role
CRV	Coastguard shore response	20,000 credits / 15 coins; crew 1–5	Coastguard Rescue Station or Home Response Location	Flood Rescue Unit trailer
Coastguard Commander	Coastguard command	25,000 credits / 15 coins; crew 1–5	Coastguard Rescue Station or Home Response Location; Coastal Command Training	Flood Rescue Unit trailer
Coastguard Support Unit	Coastguard specialist support	25,000 credits / 15 coins; crew 1–8	Coastguard Rescue Station	Flood Rescue Unit trailer
Coastguard Mud Rescue Unit	Mud rescue	20,000 credits / 15 coins; crew 1–5	Coastguard Rescue Station; Mud Rescue Training	Flood Rescue Unit and Mud Decontamination trailers
Coastguard Rope Rescue Unit	Coastal rope rescue	35,000 credits / 20 coins; crew 1–5	Coastguard Rescue Station; Rope Rescue Training	Flood Rescue Unit trailer

Course names are reproduced where verified. Course duration remains unknown when the canonical record does not publish it.

Verified Lifeboat vessels

Vessel	Role	Cost	Crew	Training	Published capacity
ILB	Inshore/ocean rescue	25,000 credits / 15 coins	3–4	Lifeboat Operations Training	3 patients, 2 prisoners
ALB	All-weather/ocean rescue	40,000 credits / 25 coins	5–7	Lifeboat Operations Training	6 patients, 4 prisoners

Both vessels require a Lifeboat Station. Their capacities do not prove that either vessel substitutes for every other watercraft requirement.

ILB and ALB planning

• Use Mission Lookup to preserve exact class requirements.
• Position by navigable coverage and route-to-water access, not straight-line map distance alone.
• Maintain trained reserve before treating one vessel as a regional dependency.
• Include patients and prisoners in capacity planning where the mission publishes them.
• Do not treat vessel transport capacity as a replacement for Ambulance or Police requirements unless the mission contract supports the handoff.

Coastguard air rescue

The verified Coastguard Rescue Helicopter provides:

• air and ocean rescue;
• patient treatment and transport;
• Coastal Air Rescue Operations training;
• SAR Airbase operation;
• fixed crew of 4;
• capacity for 16 patients;
• verified cost of 300,000 credits or 30 coins.

A representative mission may require the aircraft directly or probabilistically. Preserve the mission field rather than dispatching it as guaranteed on every coastal incident.

Air-rescue placement

• Position by regional travel advantage and offshore reach.
• Maintain ground and vessel capacity because air rescue does not replace scene, launch or towing requirements.
• Include destination and return time in readiness.
• Train replacement personnel before treating one aircraft as resilient.
• Preserve probabilistic requirements as probabilities.

Trailer and towing systems

Lifeboat 4x4 Vehicle

The verified Lifeboat 4x4 Vehicle costs 10,000 credits or 10 coins, crews 1–4 and can tow:

• Flood Rescue Unit trailer;
• Inland Rescue Boat trailer;
• Rescue Watercraft trailer.

It requires a Lifeboat Station.

Inland Rescue Boat trailer

The verified Inland Rescue Boat:

• costs 25,000 credits or 15 coins;
• requires Lifeboat Operations Training;
• operates from a Lifeboat Station;
• is towed by the Lifeboat 4x4;
• provides inland and coastal water-rescue capability.

Rescue Watercraft trailer

The verified Rescue Watercraft:

• costs 10,000 credits or 10 coins;
• requires Lifeboat Operations Training;
• requires a Lifeboat Station with Beach Lifeguard Unit;
• is towed by the Lifeboat 4x4;
• has one-patient capacity;
• retains a published speed value without converting it into an unsupported travel-time formula.

Flood Rescue Unit trailer

The verified trailer:

• costs 35,000 credits or 20 coins;
• requires Flood First Responder Training;
• requires a Coastguard Rescue Station or Lifeboat Station with Flood Rescue Expansion;
• may be towed by CRV, Coastguard Commander, Mud Rescue Unit, Rope Rescue Unit, Support Unit or Lifeboat 4x4.

The large towing list improves flexibility but does not eliminate the need to keep one compatible staffed vehicle available.

Hovercraft system

The verified Hovercraft system contains two independent resources:

1. Hovercraft Transporter — 10,000 credits / 10 coins, crew 1, towing capability;
2. Hovercraft trailer — 35,000 credits / 20 coins, crew 3–5, Hover boat commander training.

Both require a Lifeboat Station with Hover Mud Rescue Boat Expansion. The trailer operates in water and mud and cannot be counted as available without its transporter.

Mud Decontamination Unit

The verified Mud Decontamination Unit:

• is a trailer;
• costs 35,000 credits or 20 coins;
• requires Mud Rescue Training;
• requires a Coastguard Rescue Station with Coastal Rescue Mud Expansion;
• is exclusively towed by a Coastguard Mud Rescue Unit.

This exclusive towing contract makes the Mud Rescue Unit both a specialist response and a logistics dependency.

Extension activation

Verified infrastructure records establish mission-generation roles for:

• Beach Lifeguard Extension;
• Flood Rescue Extension;
• Hovercraft Extension;
• Mud Decontamination Extension.

Where price, capacity, build time or parent-building compatibility remains unpublished, the guide leaves it unknown.

Activation gates

Before activating another specialist generator, confirm:

1. the exact mission family is relevant to the account;
2. the correct specialist vehicle or trailer exists;
3. a compatible staffed towing path exists;
4. the required published training is complete;
5. shore command and common support remain available;
6. patient and cross-service demand can be absorbed;
7. another mission can be handled without borrowing the same vessel, aircraft, tow vehicle or crew.

Personnel-state planning

Verified coastal missions include roles such as Mud Rescue Operator. Mission data distinguishes personnel:

• required at the incident;
• available before mission generation;
• ranged, average-minimum or probabilistic where published.

Do not flatten these states into one universal staffing number. Vehicle crew ranges and mission personnel roles are different contracts.

Representative mission pressure

Person trapped in flood water

Verified response:

• 2 CRVs;
• 1 Flood Rescue Unit;
• 1 Flood Rescue Extension;
• 2 Coastguard Rescue Stations;
• 1 patient with 60% transport probability.

This mission demonstrates that shore response and flood rescue are separate guaranteed rows.

Vessel Taking on Water

Verified ocean response:

• 2 ALBs;
• 1 ILB;
• 1 Coastguard Rescue Helicopter;
• 3 Lifeboat Stations and 1 helicopter hangar;
• up to 2 patients generated at mission end;
• 50% transport probability and 5% critical-care probability.

This is a vessel-and-aircraft chain rather than a shore-vehicle mission.

Mud Rescue MAJOR

Verified response:

• 1 Coastguard Commander;
• 2 Coastguard Mud Rescue Units;
• 1 Coastguard Support Unit;
• 1 Hovercraft trailer;
• 1 Inland Rescue Boat trailer;
• 4 Mud Decontamination Units;
• 30 required Mud Rescue Operators;
• 10–30 patients with 70% transport probability;
• Hovercraft, Lifeboat and Mud Decontamination infrastructure preconditions.

Available-before-generation Mud Rescue Operator values are higher than the required-at-incident value. Preserve that distinction.

Transparent concurrency calculation

Vessel Taking on Water plus Mud Rescue MAJOR creates a calculated guaranteed commitment of:

• 2 ALBs;
• 1 ILB;
• 1 Coastguard Rescue Helicopter;
• 1 Coastguard Commander;
• 2 Mud Rescue Units;
• 1 Support Unit;
• 1 Hovercraft trailer;
• 1 Inland Rescue Boat trailer;
• 4 Mud Decontamination Units;
• up to 32 patients.

This is a transparent sum of two verified missions, not an official combined mission. Tow vehicles, trained crews, patient transport, launch geography and other services remain additional constraints.

Seven commissioning gates

Gate	Question	Recommended pass condition
Shore reserve	Can CRV and command demand be met without emptying the coast?	Useful shore response remains in each active zone
Correct class	Does the mission need shore, ILB, ALB, air, flood, mud, rope or another specific capability?	No generic watercraft substitution is assumed
Towing	Are the trailer and compatible tow vehicle simultaneously available?	One complete staffed logistics chain can dispatch
Training	Is the verified education complete?	Vehicle, crew and course relationship are aligned
Geography	Can the resource reach a usable launch or incident area?	Actual road/water/air coverage is practical
Cross-service	Can patients, Police, Fire, HART or SAR dependencies be supported?	The complete mission chain is ready
Recovery	Can the system relaunch after the first incident?	Vehicles, trailers and crews return to useful positions

Recommended fleet templates

These are strategy templates, not game requirements.

Foundation coastal network

Capability	Recommended position
Shore response	3–5 CRVs across the initial coastal area
Command	1 Coastguard Commander when command demand becomes regular
Support	1 Support Unit before repeated specialist incidents
Lifeboats	One class matched to current mission evidence; alliance support for rare alternatives
Towing	1 Lifeboat 4x4 for each active trailer chain, with availability audited
Specialist rescue	Delay extension activation until vehicle, training and tow path are complete

Developing network

Capability	Recommended position
Shore response	6–10 CRVs across two or more coastal clusters
Command / support	One trained route per main operating region
ILB / ALB	Distributed by navigable coverage and class-specific demand
Flood / watercraft	One complete trailer-and-tow system with replacement towing capacity
Mud / rope	One commissioned specialist group with trained reserve
Air rescue	Alliance-supported or one regional aircraft when geography justifies it

Established network

Capability	Recommended position
Shore response	Sized from measured simultaneous coastal, flood and mud demand
Command / support	Independently dispatchable groups by response zone
Vessels	ILB and ALB depth matched to mission class, geography and concurrency
Trailer systems	Duplicate critical trailers and tow vehicles by corridor or coast
Mud / rope / flood	Trained regional groups without one shared tow-vehicle failure point
Air rescue	Regional aircraft with qualified replacement depth
Patient handling	Vessel, aircraft and Ambulance handoff capacity included in resilience tests

Geographic doctrine

Coastal station network

• Position CRVs, command and support against road access to beaches, harbours, marinas and cliffs.
• Distribute specialist units so one remote mission does not strip the whole coast.
• Place tow vehicles with their intended trailers.
• Use actual road-to-launch and water coverage rather than map distance alone.

Inland-water network

• Place Lifeboat 4x4 and Inland Rescue Boat near River and Lake access.
• Preserve Fire command and Ambulance support where inland missions publish them.
• Avoid assuming ocean vessels replace trailered inland capability.
• Duplicate towing when one vehicle serves several trailers.

Flood network

• Align Flood Rescue trailers with CRVs, compatible tow vehicles and Fire flood resources.
• Distribute by river, canal, low-lying road and coastal corridor.
• Include severe-weather concurrency across several regions.
• Maintain routine Coastguard cover outside the flood incident.

Ocean network

• Place ILB, ALB and rescue helicopter by navigable reach and mission class.
• Protect replacement crews and vessel reserve.
• Account for patients generated at mission end.
• Include return and re-launch time before declaring readiness restored.

Recovery-to-readiness

After a maritime or specialist incident:

1. record shore vehicles, vessels, aircraft, trailers and crews still committed;
2. restore CRV and command cover in exposed areas;
3. return tow vehicles and trailers to compatible locations;
4. verify trained personnel remain assigned to the intended resources;
5. restore ILB, ALB and air-rescue regional coverage;
6. review patients, transports and cross-service missions still active;
7. rerun the selected concurrency scenario;
8. correct recurring geography, towing or training bottlenecks before more expansion.

Mission completion is not proof that a vessel is relaunched, a trailer is paired or a region is ready.

Common failures

Failure	Operational symptom	Correction
Treating every boat as interchangeable	The wrong vessel class attends while the mission remains open	Preserve exact mission resources
Owning trailers without tow reserve	Specialist equipment cannot dispatch	Keep compatible staffed towing paths
Centralising shore specialists	One incident empties a wide coast	Distribute by travel-time zone
Activating extensions before training	New specialist missions generate before crews are ready	Complete commissioning and replacement cohorts
Ignoring exclusive towing	Mud Decontamination trailers remain stored	Preserve the Mud Rescue Unit towing dependency
Counting crew seats as mission personnel	Vehicles are staffed but Mud Rescue Operator requirements remain open	Audit personnel roles separately
Ignoring launch geography	Nearby map resources have poor real access	Plan road-to-water and navigable coverage
Treating patient capacity as Ambulance replacement	Patients cannot complete the intended handoff	Preserve mission and transport contracts
Planning Coastguard alone	Fire, Police, HART, SAR or Ambulance rows remain open	Audit the entire mission chain
Treating completion as restored readiness	Vessels and trailers remain displaced	Run the recovery sequence

Operational readiness checklist

• shore-response and command reserve survives a normal dispatch;
• ILB, ALB, aircraft and trailer classes remain separate;
• every trailer has a compatible staffed towing vehicle;
• published training names are preserved and unknown durations remain unknown;
• Flood, Mud, Rope, Hovercraft and Beach Lifeguard generators are activated only after readiness;
• vehicle crew and mission personnel states are not conflated;
• patient and prisoner capacities are included without inventing substitution;
• road, launch, water and air geography has been tested;
• cross-service dependencies are ready;
• two reference incidents have been tested together;
• alliance support is contingency;
• recovery restores useful regional positions;
• unpublished values remain unknown rather than zero.

Stage 37D completion

The Coastguard and Lifeboat operational programme now covers:

• shore response, command and support;
• mud, rope and flood rescue;
• ILB, ALB and coastal air rescue;
• trailered inland watercraft and rescue watercraft;
• hovercraft and mud-decontamination logistics;
• extension activation and personnel semantics;
• scalable fleet templates;
• geography, concurrency and recovery-to-readiness.

The next service programme is Stage 37E — Mountain Rescue and Search and Rescue HQ operational progression.