The AFM said today it has successfully completed a re-fit of its offshore patrol vessel P61, costing around €7 million, with 75% of the costs being covered through the European Union Internal Security Fund (Borders and Visa) 2014-2020 and the remaining 25% from national funds.

Offshore patrol vessel (OPV) P61 was built for the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) in 2005 by the Fincantieri Navali shipyard in Muggiano (La Spezia), Italy and is a modified 53-metre variant of the Diciotti Class Patrol Boat. Designed to cater for the AFM’s diverse offshore tasks, P61 has the capability to land and re-fuel a small-to-medium sized helicopter and has an incorporated rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB) notch in order to safely launch and recover its RHIB in adverse sea conditions.

Over the past 12 years, this vessel was used extensively for various missions and patrolled an impressive 72,000 nautical miles—the equivalent of sailing round the globe three times—in order to successfully secure our country’s external borders. This extensive and continuous use and reliance on this vessel has undoubtedly taken its toll on its on-board systems, despite the regular and rigid maintenance schedule which is in place for operative vessels forming part of the AFM fleet.

The refit was thus aimed at overhauling the platform by replacing or upgrading most of the ship’s systems with modern state-of-the-art equipment, thereby restoring and enhancing the vessel’s original capabilities. The main focus of the refit work was the complete re-powering of the vessel, through the replacement of its main propulsion engines and gearboxes and a completely new integrated automation system. Other works carried out included the overhaul of most of the on-board systems, the introduction of a new integrated platform management system (IPMS), the installation of new navigation and communication equipment, and the expansion of on-board personnel accommodation facilities.