COMBAT CRAFT
transportation, surface-to-air transfers, dive operations and homeland security. This vessel will be operated by the LASD and will have a coverage area of 80 miles of coastline including the LAX flight path and open ocean out 50 miles to the islands of Catalina and San Clemente. Special capabilities of the Fast Response Boat will include dive operations support for up to 15 divers, transporting and deploying a SWAT team, an operating range of 400 miles, and accommodations for overnight operations. Power will be twin Cummins 540 hp diesel engines which are electronic controlled and rated EPA Tier 2 for the lowest possible emissions. Drives will be twin water jets for safety during dive operations. The vessel will be constructed in low maintenance and corrosive resistant molded fiberglass with high strength military fire-retardant vinylester resin. Also included in the contract as an Assist Vessel is a Willard SEA FORCE 18 ft. Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) with a 115 hp Honda outboard engine and trailer.
Specifications Length, o.a. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24 ft. (7.3 m) Beam, o.a. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 ft. (2.9 m) Draft loaded . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22-in. (0.6m) Propulsion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Dual 225 Hp Outboards Engines Electronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Radar, GPS, EPIRB, VHF, AIS Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 kts +
from 350 hp - 700 hp. The LRI comes with a rear collar modification required by military specifications. The rear collar adaptation is designed to keep water from back washing into the cockpit and engine compartments when the vessel enters the water from a stern ramp. Soon, the LRI will be available with Zodiac's Armorflate System - the world's first bulletproof system for RIBS and inflatables. The Armorflate design - now "AK-47 Proof" - incorporates tougher bullet-resistant soft armor ballistic material, high-pressure fabric panels and an ingenious built-in system of ceramic plates, which no longer require manual insertion. The Armorflate system folds and stores in minimal space and can be inflated rapidly to provide armor protection for those onboard. For more information visit www.zodiacmarine.com
Zodiac's Long Range Interceptor
Zodiac's Long Range Interceptor (LRI) is a rugged rigid-hull inflatable boat (RIB) designed specifically to meet the needs of various military agencies. The 36 ft. LRI has a total weight capacity - including fuel - of 6,300 lbs and can hold 30 people. LRI power options range
Response Marine Delivers Fire/Police Boat
The Somerset, Mass., Fire and Police departments have taken delivery of the latest design from Response Marine, Inc. Built by Viking Welding in Seabrook, NJ,
Northwind Marine Builds Fleet of Special Purpose RIBs
From submarines to Unmanned Surface Vessels, Northwind Marine has earned a reputation for designing and building special purpose boats. In the late-1980s Northwind Marine entered a rapidly growing market for RIBS rigid-hulls augmented by inflatable or foam collars, a concept initially developed in New Zealand. The combination of Northwind Marine's heavily constructed aluminum hulls and inflatable collars gave rise to boats well suited to rough water and high-speed operation. Early on, Northwind Marine formed an alliance with Wing Inflatables in Arcata, Calif. Wing pioneered production of abrasion and tear resistant polyurethane collars for such demanding boats as those used by Navy Seals. One of Northwind Marine's early boats went to a Northern California man who taught ocean and river search and rescue and who regularly operated his boat inside the surf. As a result of the 17-ft. boat's ability to operate in extreme conditions, with the addition of a fire pump, the concept seemed ideal to meet fire department SAR requirements. Northwind Marine designed and built a 19-ft. Extreme RIB for El Dorado County and one for Tahoe-Douglas Fire Department for use on Lake Tahoe and rivers in the Tahoe basin. Jet pumps in these boats not only are used to drive the craft at high speeds but to deliver high volume streams of water to the boats' bow monitors by a proprietary diversion system. ARIBs (Northwind chose a few years back to append aluminum to reflect the strong, metal hulls used by its models ) have turned out to provide flexible platforms for a number of special applications. In 2000, Northwind built a 34 x 12 ARIB for Offshore Grip Marine of Los Angeles as a general purpose movie boat. Reagan said he thinks this was the first time such a boat had been designed for movie work. The boat, driven by a pair of outboards to 45 knots, offers a variety of mounts for camera gear, a generator for onboard power, and seating for 26. Two years ago, engineers at Northwind Marine worked with an excursion operator in San Diego to produce what may be the "ultimate recreational vessel," a 24-ft. ARIB for Xplore Offshore in San Diego. The company uses the outboard-driven boat for "eco tours" and other expeditions in the San Diego area. Last year, Northwind built a fleet of 27-ft. ARIBs for delivery to seven Inuit communities in Nunavik in the far northern reaches of the province of Quebec. The vessels are powered by twin 225-hp Mercury 225XL Optimax outboards. The boats were designed with highly accessible equipment because of the remote nature of the communities the boats are serving. For more information email boatbuilders@northwindmarine.com
the welded aluminum boat offers firefighting, rescue and enforcement capabilities with a top speed of 42 mph. Newly developed features for the multi-agency craft include an island walk-around pilothouse and remote infrared imaging. The firefighting system delivers water to a 1,250 gpm forward monitor as well as a 2.5 in. and two 1.5 in. outlets. There is a built-in foam system drawing from two 25 gallon tanks for Class A and Class B foams. The machinery installations are aft under a flush deck and include a 220 hp engine driving the bronze Hale fire pump. Forward of the machinery compartment is a 360 degree walk-around cockpit deck with a hinged dive door and a fully enclosed pilothouse with full length, hinged EMS bench. The fire/rescue boat number nineteen for Response Marine, each of which has been developed on a custom basis. For this boat they widened the beam and added flare forward in order to increase deck area at the bow and forward quarters. The hull design is a transitional vee, and features relatively steep forward sections to ease the ride. Response Marine's advanced modeling techniques yield a hull that justifies its "Variable Tangential Displacement" moniker. VTD provides maximum utilization of plate aluminum's devlopability and formability to optimize shapes and angles of attacks of the entire skin, from keep to weather deck, for the designed operationg parameters. For more information email boats@responsemarine.com
Kvichak Completes Navy MPF Utility Boat Contract
Kvichak Marine Industries recently completed the construction and delivery of 10 each MPF utility boats for the United States Navy. The 40 ft. high-speed landing craft replace the Navy's existing LCM-8 craft as part of the Improved Navy Lighterage System in support of prepositioned Marine Amphibious assault missions. The 40 x 14-ft. landing craft have a loaded cruise speed of approximately 25 knots and a lightened flank speed of approximately 40 knots. The propulsion package includes: twin Cummins QSM11 engines rated for 660 hp at 2,300 rpm, ZF 325 marine gears, and Hamilton 364 waterjets.
30 · MarineNews · May, 2007
Photo credit: Bill Sutton
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