Bluebird K7 is a boat built for Donald Campbell to break the World Water Speed Record . Bluebird K7 was a turbo jet-engined hydroplane with which the United Kingdom 's Donald Campbell set seven world water speed records during the 1950s and 1960s . Campbell lost his life in K7 on January 4 , 1967 whilst making a bid to raise the speed record to over 300 m on Coniston Water .