USCG Defender class boat

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A Coast Guard 25-foot defender class boat from Station Seattle enforces a security zone around a Washington State Ferry in Elliot Bay Dec. 22, 2003.

USCG 25' RB-S 25583 assigned to USCG Station Oregon Inlet, North Carolina

Cranes intentionally hold a RB-S in the water to conduct rollover stability and egress tests.

The USCG Defender class boat is a standard boat introduced by the United States Coast Guard in July 2003. The Coast Guard plans to replace a mixture of older boats with up to 700 Defender class vessels. The boats serves a variety of missions, including search and rescue, port security and constabulary duties.^[1]

The boats are 25 feet (7.6 meters) in length and have a draft of less than 1 meter (3 feet). Powered by twin Honda outboard motors, they are capable of speeds in excess of 40 knots and have a range of 105 or 125 nautical miles, depending on the type of fuel tanks used. The boat can launch with a two-person crew, but has a carrying capacity for 10 persons. The boat can be transported by a C-130 Hercules aircraft or, more prosaically, a boat trailer. It can mount an M60 or M240 machine gun in the bow.

Although superficially similar to a rigid-hulled inflatable boat, the Defender is actually an aluminum hulled vessel, equipped with a hard foam filled floatation collar. The boats are built by SAFE Boats International of Port Orchard, Washington.^[2]

[edit] See also

• Equipment of the United States Coast Guard

[edit] References

1. ^ Defender Class Response Boats. United States Coast Guard. Retrieved on November 11, 2006.
2. ^ SAFE Boats International. SAFE Boats International LLC. Retrieved on November 11, 2006.

  This article related to water transport is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This article about a specific naval or Coast Guard ship or boat of the United States is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.