description
Object description
The launch of the minehunter HMS Wilton at the Woolston yard of Messrs Vosper Thornycroft. Naval publicity claimed her as the world's first glass reinforced plastic (GRP) warship.
Full description
Two cameras on either side of the covered slipway record the launching. After a brief address and the customary blessing, Mrs S J Palmer, wife of the Deputy Director General Ships and Head of the Royal Corps of Naval Constructors, pulls a lever which breaks the bottle over Wilton's bows. After a slight pause the ship slips bow-first into the water. Tugs take Wilton round to a fitting out basin. Some of the Vosper workers stand on the slipway regarding the newly launched ship.
Physical description
16mm
