NEW BOAT • The Patten Dive Boat
The little Inflatable that could!

LOA: 17’ 2”
Beam: 6’ 6”
Draft: 6”
Weight: 650 lbs.
Fuel: 6 U.S. gals.
Power: Evinrude E-TEC @ 60 hp
Top/Cruising speed: 30/20 mph
Range: 120 miles @ 20 mph

Resting atop a trailer off to the side at this year’s Stuart Boat Show, a bright yellow inflatable caught my eye. Pausing, I took in the full breadth of its profile and was immediately intrigued. Decidedly different than any other inflatable to have crossed my path, I noticed tube atop tube atop tube. Certainly warranting a closer inspection, I discovered a large hole in the bottom, along with a unique slice of U.S. history.
In 1934, a Navy plane went down over the ocean. The pilot survived the crash but perished while awaiting rescue. In 1939, Fred Patten, brother of the downed pilot, pioneered the inflatable life raft so others wouldn’t suffer the same fate as his brother. Following WWII, Patten began manufacturing his life rafts and became the major supplier for the U.S. government. In 1955, the company relocated its facilities from Massachusetts to Lake Worth, Florida, where it began building rescue crafts along with life rafts for government agencies. Customers include NASA, which it has supplied with life rafts from the first Apollo mission through today. For the past 18 years, the firm has built the Patten Dive Boat for the exclusive use of government agencies. Now, this unique inflatable is being offered to recreational yachtsmen. ...

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