The next generation of rigid inflatable boat is put through its paces off Portsmouth.
The Pacific 24 Mark-4 RIBS will be used on Royal Navy ships such as the Offshore Patrol Vessels, as well as the new Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers.
The Ministry of Defence has placed a £13.5m contract for 60 of the vessels with BAE Systems.
The RIBS can travel from ship or shore at speeds of up to 38 knots (44mph) as a rapid response craft to perform fast rescue, anti-piracy and counter-narcotics missions.
The Pacific 24 Mark-4 RIB will include high-performance shock absorbing seats, which will minimise crew fatigue, allowing them to travel up to six times the distance.
A team of 19 BAE Systems employees will start work in early 2016 to build the boats over the next four years at the company’s small boats manufacturing facility at Portsmouth Naval Base.
Announcing the contract during a visit to Portsmouth, Secretary of State for Defence Michael Fallon said: “Built in Portsmouth dockyard this contract is not only good news for the Navy, but also for BAE Systems whose innovation has provided a modern design that will allow our armed forces to carry out operations ranging from armed boarding including anti-piracy and counter-narcotics missions to providing emergency rescue.”
Les Gregory, Product & Training Services Director at BAE Systems said: “Our focus for the next generation Pacific 24 was to extend the operational capabilities of a boat’s crew through the use of shock-absorbing seats designed to reduce driver and crew fatigue.
“The new seats provide significantly greater performance but are much heavier, so we faced an additional challenge to reduce the weight on the boat elsewhere to compensate.”
The fourth generation Pacific 24 RIB features a 370HP twin turbo diesel electronic engine with inbuilt self-diagnostic technology.
The boats have also gained the Safety of Life at Sea accreditation meaning they can now also be used for rescue operations.
