Fairey Marine Ltd

Fairey Marine Ltd was founded in the late 1940’s by Sir Richard Fairey and Mr. Chichester-Smith, at that time, Managing Director of Fairy Aviation. The company was originally located in Hamble and built Motor Torpedo Boats during WW II. After the war, Olympic Yachtsman Charles Currey was recruited to help run the company. Among the famous dinghies produced by Fairey Marine are the Firefly, Albacore, Falcon, Swordfish, Jollyboat, Flying Fifteen, 505 and International 14’s along with the much smaller Dinky and Duckling. Later on in the 1950’s they produced a series of larger sailing cruisers, the Atalanta, Titania, and Fulmar. These boats, though strange looking today, were extremely innovative craft, and were built using Fairey’s ‘hot molding’ process that had been perfected during the war. It is said that a fair number of these craft were exported to the US. The company also produced the 27’ Fisherman motor sailer (based on the Fairey Lifeboat hull) along with the 15 Cinderella (outboard runabout) and the 16’6” Faun (outboard powered family cruiser). US builder George O’Day began as an importer of dinghies and other yachts built by Fairey Marine. No longer in business as a boat building entity.