BAE Systems sells six Pacific 24 RIBs destined for Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard

BAE Systems has been awarded a contract worth almost £2m to provide six Pacific 24 (P24) RIBs to Austal, based in Australia.

The RIBs, built and customised in BAE Systems’ Boats factory in Portsmouth, are being supplied to Austal to equip two Cape-class Patrol Boats they are building for the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard.

The P24 is a small and agile boat that can be deployed for a variety of tasks from counter-piracy and counter-narcotics missions, to force protection, rescue and logistics operations. It is used by a number of military customers, including the Royal Navy, but its versatility, fuel-efficiency and high-tech construction is said to lends itself for use by civil customers too.

“The MKIV Pacific 24 from BAE Systems was the first choice of sea boat for the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard,” says Ben Wardle from Austal.

“Our customer needs assurance that their sea boats can perform in life and death scenarios in harsh maritime environments, including in tropical storm and hurricane conditions. The pedigree of the P24, with its range of international customers including the military, as well as its SOLAS accreditation, made it the ideal vessel for the job.”

The P24’s seating arrangements – six passengers and two crew – will also be specially configured for coast guard operations, including the ability to remove seats in order to boost carrying capacity and to transport different loads, including stretcher patients or different numbers of passengers.

In addition to the standard technical features of the MKIV P24 boat, custom modifications supplied to Austal included the installation of a ground plate that will enable Austal to supply and fit its own radio communications system.

In the UK, the P24 is used extensively in the Royal Navy’s surface fleet, being embarked on a number of warships and Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels. These include the UK’s new aircraft carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, all its Type 45 destroyers, Type 23 frigates and Offshore Patrol Vessels.

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