 PS Pioneer was launched in 1905. She was of a light design with small paddle wheels. Thus her paddle boxes did not protrude above the promenade deck.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name |
|
| Owner | David MacBrayne Ltd[1] |
| Builder | A. & J. Inglis, Pointhouse, Glasgow[1] |
| Launched | 14 February 1905 |
| Fate | Scrapped 1958 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage | 241 GRT[1] |
| Length | 160 feet[1] |
| Propulsion | Paddle compound diagonal |
| Speed | 14 knots |
PS Pioneer was a Clyde-built paddle steamer launched in 1905, built by A. & J. Inglis at their Pointhouse shipyard for David MacBrayne.[1] She served as a passenger and mail ship between the Kintyre peninsula and the islands Islay, Jura and Gigha for over thirty years.[1] In 1939 she was moved to the Mallaig and Portree, Isle of Skye route, having been replaced by MV Lochiel.[2]
In 1943, after being laid up for a year, she was requisitioned by the Admiralty and used as a Submarine Command HQ Ship at Fairlie, North Ayrshire.[1] In 1945 the Admiralty purchased her and renamed her HMS Harbinger, but the following year her sponsons and paddles were removed and she was used as a floating laboratory at the Isle of Portland base.[1]
Finally in 1958 she was sent to Rotterdam, Netherlands to be scrapped.[1]