In the Lithuanian shipyard "Western Baltija Shipbuilding" in Klaipeda, the first of the two boats Sea Trial Coast (SVK) has been launched, as the BAAINBw reported on April 4 via Twitter. The boat is now being taken to the main contractor's Fassmer shipyard in Berne, where it will be fitted out. The handover to the Bundeswehr could take place at the turn of the year 2023/2024. The second boat is to follow in about three months.
On June 23, 2021, the Budget Committee of the German Bundestag made EUR 95 million available for the project by approving the EUR 25 million proposal. According to the Bundeswehr, the identical boats will replace the class 745 "Breitgrund" and "Mittelgrund" multi-purpose boats from the 1980s and the more than 50-year-old bulky weapon test boat "Wilhelm Pullwer".
Ein Jahr später wurden die beiden Boote in Klaipeda auf Kiel gelegt. Damals war die Fertigstellung der Boote bis November 2023 angegeben worden.
The Bundeswehr writes on its website that the new measuring boats are to be used primarily in the North and Baltic Seas. Here they are supposed to secure and salvage torpedoes as part of tests, for example. In addition, they will support the use of autonomous underwater vehicles and divers within the scope of defense technical examinations of diving devices and equipment. The measuring boats can also be used to accompany submarines during their shallow water tests.
For this purpose, the 50 meter long and 11 meter wide units are equipped with a crane and a rear gallows, among other things. In order to ensure the necessary maneuverability for the tests, the boats each have two 360-degree rotatable rudder propeller drives and two bow thrusters.
Editors / gwh
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