This pair of powerful but compact ship-assist harbour tugs are ideal for smaller harbours where larger tugs cannot operate effectively.
Standout design elements include a small wheelhouse with a folding mast for reduced air draught, allowing the tugs to work under the flare of larger vessels, and upward-facing windows for superior situational awareness during close-quarters operations.
These heavy-duty, highly manoeuvrable tugs offer an optimal balance of performance, visibility, and versatility for tight harbour environments.
"Rascal is a compact tug is optimised for handling smaller ships with low clearances to the ship hull flares at bow and stern," Evan Gatehouse, Senior Naval Architect and Project Director at Robert Allan Ltd (RAL), told Baird Maritime.
"Her folding mast and very small and central wheelhouse, without a deckhouse below, enables her to handle these types of ships better."
Gatehouse added that the builder "struggled a bit" with fitting the required air compressors and DEF/urea tanks into a fairly compact engine space that was restricted by US tonnage framing.
"Ideally, we would have had a bit more volume to work with, but our objective was to keep the tug small."
The delivery of Rascal and sister Rowdy was completed in 2025 along with many other RAL-designed tugs, confirming what company President and CEO Mike Fitzpatrick had said was a continuation of the strong activity levels seen in 2024. Many of these tugs were built to address the growing need of both new and existing ports for vessels capable of handling larger ships.
The company even continued to develop and deliver vessels other than tugs in 2025. Some of the more notable of these are two bunkering barges for operation in Canada and two dive boats for a South Asian naval customer.
For a list of the 2025 "Best Of" award winners, please click here.
