First HPB-1500 high speed patrol craft launched

New patrol craft to protect major Royal Navy assets, including capital ships and submarines.

The first of 18 patrol craft being built for police units around the U.K. and Gibraltar,has been launched into the River Mersey at the Bromborough, U.K. yard of RHIB and fast workboat specialist Marine Specialised Technology Group (MST Group).

The HPB-1500 Police Patrol Craft (PPC) vessels are being built for the U.K. Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) and the Gibraltar Ministry of Defence Police (GDP) under a six-year contract that will see them delivered to protect major Royal Navy assets, including capital ships and submarines, along with installations in and around U.K. dockyard ports, Gibraltar Naval Base, and wherever else necessary.

The launch of the first craft is a major milestone that comes some 18 months after contract award. The first part of the contract has seen the craft design being completed by MST’s design partner BMT, which carried out the vessel design.

Following its launch, this first vessel will now go through several weeks of trials before being presented to MoD Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) for acceptance. In the early part of the first craft’s life, it will primarily be used as an educational platform, firstly for MST to provide training to the MDP Training Team. From here, MDP Trainers will then be able to provide high-level guidance and support to officers who will crew and operate each craft that enters service.

Craft 1, named Osprey, will be closely followed by a new sister craft in a rolling three-month program, with the second craft anticipated to be delivered in the early part of 2023.

Andrew Phillips, technical director at MST Group, called the vessel “a fantastic addition to MST’s High-Speed Patrol Boat (HPB) model range portfolio.”

“MST & BMT design and engineering teams worked closely ensuring that the HPB DNA flowed throughout this new design, resulting in a technologically advanced craft, from hull construction to the capable on board C4iSR systems.” he said. “All a testament to the skills and expertise this exciting partnership brings to the patrol boat market.”

“The first launch is a very important milestone in this program,” said Martin Bissuel, business sector lead at BMT. “It is the result of many months of hard work, innovation, and close cooperation between the BMT and MST teams to design and build a vessel that will offer outstanding capability to the users. We look forward to supporting the build of the rest of the fleet, both from a vessel design point of view as well as providing the ILT (instructor led training elements) which are so critical to the required high levels of in-service availability required.”