Express-class schooner
The Express class was a class of two schooner-rigged advice-boats of the Royal Navy. John Henslow designed the schooners to carry dispatches. To achieve speed they were long and sharp-lined. However, the Navy did not like them and so the Navy Board ordered no more after the launch of the two in 1800.
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Express class |
| Operators | Royal Navy |
| In service | 1800-1812 |
| Planned | 2 |
| Completed | 2 |
| Lost | 0 or 1 |
| Retired | 1 or 2 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Express class |
| Type | Schooner |
| Tons burthen | 17848⁄94 (bm) |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 21 ft 6 in (6.6 m) |
| Depth of hold | 13 ft 1 in (4.0 m) |
| Propulsion | Sails |
| Sail plan | Schooner |
| Complement | 30 |
| Armament | 6 x 12-pounder carronades |
Both were commissioned in January 1801 for Jersey, and both sailed in a year or so for Trinidad. Express served until she was sold in 1813; Advice was lost in 1804 in the West Indies, or sold there in 1805.
The Navy tried again to find a design for an advice-boat. In 1804 it ordered 18 Ballahoo-class schooners. Then a year later it ordered 12 Cuckoo-class schooners. Both classes were built in Bermuda.
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