The SA Navy (SAN) will not add multi-mission inshore patrol vessel (MMIPV) number three to its fleet inventory this year.
The Damen Shipyards Cape Town (DSCT) built SAS King Adam Kok III (P1573) is, according to project manager Armscor, still busy with acceptance trials, better known in South Africa as operational testing and evaluation (OTE).
She was scheduled to commence OTE in November with a possible acceptance date of this month (December). That was ruled out this week by Armscor Senior Manager: Corporate Communication, Liziwe Nkonyana, who told defenceWeb “acceptance trials are ongoing and will be extended to the end of January 2025”.
As far as becoming the newest addition to the SAN patrol squadron at Naval Base (NB) Durban is concerned, Nkonyana would not be drawn on either a specific month or day saying “the third MMIPV will be taken into service before the end of the 2024/25 financial year” – just over three months away.
When she joins SAS King Sekhukhune I (P 1571) and SAS King Shaka Zulu (P1572) alongside the refurbished SAS Makhanda (P1569), P1573 will complete the inshore patrol strength of the maritime service of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF).
All three DSCT platforms are built to the company’s Stan Patrol 6211 design. The 62 m long, 750 ton vessels have a 20 knot economical speed and a range of 2 000 nautical miles. Each vessel is fitted with a Reutech 20 mm Super Sea Rogue marine gun and Reutech FORT (frequency modulated optical radar tracker) low probability of intercept (LPI) optronics radar tracking system. They carry a nine and seven metre RHIBs (rigid hull inflatable boats) for boarding and other operations.
