HMC Searcher of the UK Border Agency on the River Fowey |
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | 42m Customs Cutter |
| Builders: | Damen Group, Netherlands |
| Operators: | UK Border Agency |
| Cost: | £4.3M per unit |
| Built: | 2001-2004 |
| In service: | 2001-present |
| Completed: | 4 |
| Active: | 4 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Damen Stan Patrol 4207[1] |
| Displacement: | 238 GRT |
| Length: | 42.08 m (138.1 ft)[1] |
| Beam: | 7.11 m (23.3 ft)[1] |
| Draught: | 2.52 m (8.3 ft)[1] |
| Installed power: | 4,176 kW (5,600 hp) |
| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | 26 knots (48 km/h) |
| Range: | 1,750 nmi (3,240 km) at 12kn |
| Endurance: | 14 days |
| Boats and landing craft carried: |
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| Complement: | 12 |
| Armament: | Nil |
The UKBA 42m Customs Cutter, formerly HMRC 42m Customs Cutter, is a class of four patrol vessels, derived from the Dutch Damen Stan Patrol 4207 design, operated by the UK Border Agency.[2]
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The class were built to the Damen Stan Patrol 4207 design in the Damen Shipyards in the Netherlands between 2001 and 2004, and have a steel hull with an aluminium superstructure.[1] Much effort has been expended in making them quiet to reduce crew fatigue; their engines are raft-mounted, decks throughout the ships are of a floating type, and their compartments are constructed on a box-within-a-box principle.[1]
A 7-metre (23 ft) Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) can be launched from the stern slipway. They are fitted with a 2,000-litre (440 imp gal) per minute fire fighting system for dealing with fires in other ships.
The Inland Revenue and HM Customs and Excise Departments merged to form HM Revenue and Customs on 18 April 2005, and from this time customs cutters changed their prefix from "HMRC" (Her Majesty's Revenue Cutter) to "HMCC" (Her Majesty's Customs Cutter). Following transfer to the UK Border Agency this was shortened to the current HMC (Her Majesty's Cutter) and a new livery applied to the fleet of cutters.[3]
The class are fitted with twin Caterpillar 3516B DI-TA Elec engines driving twin 4-bladed controllable-pitch propellers through a pair of 3.5:1 reduction gearboxes. The total installed power of 4,176 kW (5,600 hp)[1] gives them a top speed of 26 knots (48 km/h).[1] A single Promac bow thruster is fitted[1] for slow speed manoeuvring in confined spaces. Electrical power is supplied by a pair of 106 kWA generators.[1]
The ships are not armed.
| Name | Ship Builder | Launched | Callsign | IMO Number | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HMC Seeker | Damen Shipyard, Netherlands | 2001 | ZQNL2 | 9234795 | In service |
| HMC Searcher | Damen Shipyard, Netherlands | 2002 | ZQNK9 | 9234800 | In service |
| HMC Vigilant | Damen Shipyard, Netherlands | 2003 | ZITI4 | 9276353 | In service |
| HMC Valiant | Damen Shipyard, Netherlands | 2004 | MBLL8 | 9293698 | In service |
HMC Vigilant seized an estimated 300kg of cocaine off the south coast of the Isle of Wight in gale-force conditions during 2010. Officers from the UK Border Agency, the Serious Organised Crime Agency and Hampshire Police discovered the drugs in 11 rucksacks attached to a buoy off Tennyson Point, close to where a fishing vessel was spotted acting suspiciously over the bank holiday weekend. Three people were arrested on the fishing vessel Galwad-Y-Mor (SU116) in Yarmouth, and were charged with conspiracy to import cocaine into the UK.
HMC Searcher seized £12 million of cannabis off the Sussex coast in July 2011. Searcher's fast patrol intercepted and boarded a Dutch yacht. It was then escorted into Newhaven Harbour and 4 men were arrested and taken into custody at Brighton. A court hearing is yet to be held.
| UK Border Agency 42m Cutters | |||||||||
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