New patrol craft to guard main Royal Navy property, together with capital ships and submarines.
The first of 18 patrol craft being constructed for police models across the U.Okay. and Gibraltar,has been launched into the River Mersey on the Bromborough, U.Okay. yard of RHIB and quick workboat specialist Marine Specialised Technology Group (MST Group).
The HPB-1500 Police Patrol Craft (PPC) vessels are being constructed for the U.Okay. Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) and the Gibraltar Ministry of Defence Police (GDP) beneath a six-year contract that can see them delivered to guard main Royal Navy property, together with capital ships and submarines, together with installations in and round U.Okay. dockyard ports, Gibraltar Naval Base, and wherever else needed.
The launch of the primary craft is a significant milestone that comes some 18 months after contract award. The first a part of the contract has seen the craft design being accomplished by MST’s design accomplice BMT, which carried out the vessel design.
Following its launch, this primary vessel will now undergo a number of weeks of trials earlier than being offered to MoD Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) for acceptance. In the early a part of the primary craft’s life, it’s going to primarily be used as an academic platform, firstly for MST to supply coaching to the MDP Training Team. From right here, MDP Trainers will then be capable to present high-level steerage and assist to officers who will crew and function every craft that enters service.
Craft 1, named Osprey, will likely be intently adopted by a brand new sister craft in a rolling three-month program, with the second craft anticipated to be delivered within the early a part of 2023.
Andrew Phillips, technical director at MST Group, referred to as the vessel “a fantastic addition to MST’s High-Speed Patrol Boat (HPB) model range portfolio.”
“MST & BMT design and engineering teams worked closely ensuring that the HPB DNA flowed throughout this new design, resulting in a technologically advanced craft, from hull construction to the capable on board C4iSR systems.” he mentioned. “All a testament to the skills and expertise this exciting partnership brings to the patrol boat market.”
“The first launch is a very important milestone in this program,” mentioned Martin Bissuel, enterprise sector lead at BMT. “It is the result of many months of hard work, innovation, and close cooperation between the BMT and MST teams to design and build a vessel that will offer outstanding capability to the users. We look forward to supporting the build of the rest of the fleet, both from a vessel design point of view as well as providing the ILT (instructor led training elements) which are so critical to the required high levels of in-service availability required.”
