Feature 4 | COAST GUARD & PATROL BOATS
Tese small craſt are complemented by a handful of other minor patrol craſt and several dozen RHIBs. Apart from managing the 35m CPB
programme, NAVESEA’s PEO Ships also manages a two-ship ‘offshore support vessel’ (OSV) programme. Tese vessel are intended for use with the CPB as part of larger US Navy-funded effort to provide the growing Iraqi Navy with spare parts, MSI Seahawk 30mm guns, ammunition, training, naval simulators and infrastructure to the Umm Qasr Naval Base in southern Iraq.
The Iraqi Navy’s Predator class patrol boats were built in China.
while endurance is around a week. Crew size is reported to be anywhere from 15 to 25 including an embarked special-forces contingent.
Rapid launch and recovery A stern ramp permits rapid launch and recovery of a 7m rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB) for high-speed interdiction and ‘visit board search seizure’ (VBSS) operations. Te CPB can also be also be refuelled at sea. The Swiftships design it intended
to survive Sea State (SS) 5. They can maintain full operational capability in SS 3, including a 20knot patrol speed and 10knot sustained loitering speed for 12hours. Te service life of these boats is expected to be 25 years with about
1500 hours of planned operational use every year. The Iraqi Navy uses these boats for
protecting critical national infrastructure – offshore oil installations at Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal and Al Basra Oil Terminal, ports as well as ensuring security of Iraqi territorial waters. In operational use, groups of 35m CPB would be led by four Fincantieri built 53.4m 391tonne Fateh (Saettia Mk 4) class large patrol craſt which entered service in 2009 and early 2010. Until the arrival of the 35m CPB and the
53m Fateh class patrol ships, the mainstay of the Iraqi Navy was five Chinese-built 27m, 100tonne Predator class patrol boats and a number of locally built Al Faw patrol boats. Tese are around 30m in length.
Riverhawk OSVs Two Riverhawk designed OSVs are under construction at Gulf Island Marine Fabricators in Houma, Louisiana under a subcontract to Riverhawk. The first vessel is slated for delivery to NAVSEA in September 2011 and the second by December 2011. At the direction of the Iraqi government, NAVSEA awarded the contract, valued at US$70.14 million to a relatively little-known prime contractor, RiverHawk Fast Sea Frames LLC in March 2010. Te total support package, which includes training and other services is significantly higher with a contract value of US$113.5 million. The
steel hulled OSV displaces
approximately 1400tonnes, has a length of 60m, beam of 11.2m and a draſt of 3.8m. Powered by two diesels driving two propellers they will have a maximum speed is around 16knots. Range is 4000nm and endurance is a minimum of 15 days. Like the 35m CPB, the OSV are fitted
The first Riverhawk 60m OSV is to be delivered next year.
with a MSI Seahawk DS30M A2 30mm cannon and four 0.50calibre heavy machineguns. It will also carry two fast attack boats (FAB), most likely 9.5m SeaSpray RHIBs or 26ſt Safeboats Defender boats. Te FABs are to be launched and recovered via a knuckleboom deck crane. Some 26 Defenders were supplied to the Iraqi Navy by the US Coast Guard using FMS funding. According to NAVSEA, the mission
of these OSV is to act as a forward- deployed support ships for the CPBs on oil platform security deployments. In addition, the vessels can perform limited firefighting, diving support and pollution abatement. WT
38 Warship Technology July/August 2011
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