US-Donated Vessels to Serve With Sea Forces Command
Uruguay’s Minister of Defence, Javier Garciá, presided over the commissioning ceremony of three Protector-class coast guard vessels into the Uruguayan Navy (UN) on 13 November.
Donated by the US government, the vessels, based on the Damen Stan Patrol 2406 design, arrived in Montevideo after a 70-day, 7,400nmi voyage during which they called at 14 ports. Officially handed over to the UN last December, Río Arapey, Río de la Plata and Río Yaguarón (ROU 14, 15 and 16 respectively) joined Sea Forces Command – two to serve at the new Fray Bentos Naval Base on the Uruguay river and the other at Montevideo.
Built by Bollinger Shipyards early in the new millennium, the vessels are 26.8m long, with a beam of 6.2m and a draught of 1.85m, can deploy a RHIB over the transom and feature two MTU 12V 396 TE 94 engines, rated at 1,680kW at 2,000rpm and driving two fixed-pitch propellers, giving the vessels a top speed of up to 35 knots.
Santiago Rivas in Buenos Aires for MON