ST Marine launches second LMV
Singapore Technologies Marine (ST Marine) has launched the second Littoral Mission Vessel (LMV), Sovereignty, for the Republic of Singapore Navy, the company announced on 16 April.
The launch marks a key milestone for the Singaporean LMV programme. ST Marine was awarded the contract to design and construct eight LMVs for the navy in 2013. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2016, with the new vessels replacing the Fearless class patrol vessels designed and delivered by ST Marine in the 1990s.
The LMVs have a length of 80m, beam of 12m and displacement of 1,250 tonnes. They are 2.5 times larger than the outgoing Fearless-class vessels, and are designed for a range of missions including maritime security, mine clearance, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations.
The vessels feature an integrated command centre where the machinery control room, combat information centre and bridge are co-located. They can also leverage various mission modules that are reconfigurable to respond to different roles and conditions.
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