Made by the Chantiers navals de Cornouaille shipyard in 1965 for the Corps des Ponts et Chaussées (France’s Bridge and Highway Corps), the Flimiou was the all-purpose boat in Douarnenez for around 40 years. Decommissioned and consigned to a corner of the Port-Rhu, it was restored by the Port Museum’s team in 2014.
It has been well-known among the people of Douarnenez since the 1960s, having met the needs of the local maritime community at a time when its activity was still intense.
At the time, it was the port’s tug. It could pull a large trawler or a 400 register ton Mauritanian lobster boat. It was also the pilot boat that took the harbourmaster to cargo ships delivering frozen tuna to the canneries. Additionally, it helped to manoeuvre and position ships and sometimes served as a buoy tender. In short, it was a multifunctional boat.