Fincantieri lays keel for third PPA
Fincantieri has begun construction of the Italian Navy’s third Multipurpose Patrol Ship (PPA) at its shipyard in Riva Trigoso, Genova, the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation announced on 8 November.
The ship, the first in the 'light plus' configuration, will be launched at the end of 2020. Based on a common platform, PPAs will be built in three different configurations: light (two ships), light plus (three ships) and full (two ships).
The light version will have a complete set of artillery and will be able to deploy developing operational capabilities. The light plus version will be equipped with missile firing capability with actuators also planned for ballistic missile defence. The full version will be able to operate in all naval warfare domains including anti-air warfare, anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface warfare.
The PPAs will also be utilised to support non-combat operations such as disaster relief and humanitarian assistance.
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