PNG receives first Guardian-class patrol boat
The Australian Department of Defence has handed over the first Guardian-class patrol boat, HMPNGS Ted Diro, to Papua New Guinea (PNG) under Australia’s Pacific Maritime Security programme.
This is the first of four new boats to be gifted to PNG as part of the Pacific Patrol Boat Replacement project, and the first of 21 Guardian-class patrol boats that will be gifted to 12 Pacific island countries and Timor-Leste.
The 39.5m steel-hulled Guardian-class patrol boats are being built by Austal in Western Australia under a project worth over $350 million.
Christopher Pyne, Australia’s Minister for Defence, said: ‘The Ted Diro handover marks the start of the maritime element of the Morrison government’s commitment to the new Pacific Maritime Security programme. The new vessels replace the current Pacific patrol boats, operated by 12 participating nations, and will provide each nation with enhanced abilities to conduct maritime surveillance and law enforcement operations.’
The next vessel will be gifted to Tuvalu in April 2019, and the last will go to Timor-Leste in October 2023.
You may also like
More from Naval Warfare
-
![US weighs offshore warship production due to industrial limits]()
US weighs offshore warship production due to industrial limits
A Pentagon push to procure warships from Japanese and South Korean shipyards could reshape allied naval industrial strategy, but critics warn the approach risks hollowing out the domestic base Washington is seeking to restore.
-
![Lessons shaping the next phase of Arleigh Burke production post-Flight IIA]()
Lessons shaping the next phase of Arleigh Burke production post-Flight IIA
The accelerated delivery of the final Flight IIA destroyer, USS Patrick Gallagher, showcases the payoff of years of workforce investment and process reform at Bath Iron Works, with the lessons feeding into Flight III production.
-
![Ukraine war drives ‘minimum deployable capability’ doctrine in uncrewed systems development]()
Ukraine war drives ‘minimum deployable capability’ doctrine in uncrewed systems development
Ukraine’s battlefield has rewritten the rules of uncrewed systems development. For Syos Aerospace, real-time operator feedback, lean serial production and a system-of-systems philosophy are central to its operating model.
-
![AUKUS advance on UUVs contrasts with Virginia-class compromise]()
AUKUS advance on UUVs contrasts with Virginia-class compromise
The AUKUS partnership is accelerating uncrewed undersea capability while its submarine arm inches forward, and Australia’s decision to settle for three in-service Virginia-class boats raises questions about industrial risk, dependency and whether Pillar II may deliver meaningful capability long before Pillar I can.
