Pacific-class

Summary

Description

The Pacific class, also referred to as the Pacific Forum class or the ASI 315 class, encompasses a group of 22 patrol boats designed and constructed by Australia from 1985 to 1997 and donated to twelve South Pacific countries. Aiding these nations, the vessels are a part of the Pacific Patrol Boat Program and serve primarily in maritime surveillance and fisheries protection roles, handled by various military, coast guard, or police forces.

The concept for the design was a response to the 200 nautical-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1982, which left many Southwest Pacific islands in need of maritime policing capabilities. Australia answered their calls for help with the Pacific Patrol Boat Program, led by a design from Australian Shipbuilding Industries (ASI), which created a vessel proficient in maritime surveillance, interdiction, search and rescue, and fisheries protection. The first of these ships was delivered in 1987, with the program concluding in 1997 after extending its original scope. The Pacific-class patrol boats are propelled by two Caterpillar 3516TA diesel engines, allowing speeds of up to 20 knots and are armed variably with machine guns and GAM-BO1 20 mm guns, dependent on the operational needs of each nation. They are equipped with Furuno 1011 surface search radars.

Throughout their history, the boats required refits and encountered issues with components such as propellers and cooling systems, which were all resolved in their early stages of operation. Maintenance refits have extended their predicted service life to 2027, as per ongoing updates up to 2012.

Multiple derivative designs have come from the Pacific-class hull, like Kuwait Coast Guard's shorter patrol boats, Hong Kong's modified Protector class with pump-jet engines, a navigation training vessel named Seahorse Mercator for Defence Maritime Services, Canadian Navy's Orca-class, and the Ilocos Norte class for the Philippine Coast Guard.

The twelve countries that operate the Pacific-class patrol boats include Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Federated States of Micronesia, Tonga, Solomon Islands, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Palau, Samoa, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

Plans for a new generation of patrol boats were announced in 2014 as part of a more extensive Pacific Patrol Boat Program, considering a class of at least 20 new vessels. These boats, the Guardian-class, are set to bring updated capabilities and extend the life and reach of the program, constructed by Austal following a selection process that concluded in 2016.

Technical specifications