Australia gifts Guardian-class patrol vessel to Fiji
The Royal Australian Navy gifted a newly built patrol boat to the government of Fiji on 6 March, in a ceremony at shipbuilder Austal’s Henderson shipyard.
RFNS Savenaca is the sixth Guardian-class built by Austal, and the first to be delivered to a Pacific island nation on behalf of the Australian government.
Austal CEO David Singleton said: ‘the Pacific Boat Replacement Project [PPB-R] has really hit its stride, with this sixth Guardian-class Patrol Boat benefiting from a number of innovative production processes that have reduced production time, while maintaining quality.’
The A$335 million ($222.5m) PPB-R contract was awarded to Austal in May 2016, covering construction of 21 vessels. The boats are destined for delivery to the following Pacific Island nations: Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Micronesia, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Naval Warfare
-
![UK and US marines train to guard nuclear deterrent submarines]()
UK and US marines train to guard nuclear deterrent submarines
The Autumn round of Tartan Eagle training just concluded in Scotland.
-
![Saab and Singapore DSTA expand their understanding on undersea defence]()
Saab and Singapore DSTA expand their understanding on undersea defence
The organisations have broadened the remit of an existing MoU to help boost underwater defence innovation.
-
![Norway invites four nations to talk partnerships over new frigates]()
Norway invites four nations to talk partnerships over new frigates
The US, the UK, France and Germany each have existing frigate programmes.
