The intention was good. Malta has realised that it needs another off shore patrol vessel to complement the long distance Diciotti Saetta class P-61. The government has, as a result, lodged a request with the EU’s Ecternal Borders Fund for assistance to order a tailor-made vessel for Malta’s search and rescue needs. In that way, the new vessel and the existing P-61 will be able to switch in and out of service to allow for much needed maintenance and repairs.

At present, the P-61 is understood to be in need of refit. It has been in constant service since it was commissioned by the AFM’s Maritime Squadron in 2005, that is already 10 years of service. Malta’s SAR operations are taking place further out to sea on a more regular basis than in the past as mass departures of migrants from Libya are becoming the norm. Their inflatable dinghies end up in trouble just a couple of hundred miles off the Libyan coast, and because Italy’s Mare Nostrum operation has come to an end, our vessels are being called to scenes which are literally in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea.

As things stand, the P-61 is no longer reliable and as a stop-gap measure, the government has taken on a vessel which was donated by the Irish navy. So far, so good. The ship is known to be “a good one” as their crew described it when it was decommissioned in Ireland.

But the problem is that the ship is well past her use-by date. She is 36 years old, was the oldest and longest serving ship in the Irish Navy and had patrolled enough miles to equate to circumnavigating the globe 28 times.

There are a number of issues to highlight. The vessel had developed faults and malfunctioned a couple of years ago and was propelled forward into a pontoon rather than backward and ended up with bow damage. The Irish Navy acknowledged that the vessel’s age could have contributed to the malfunction. In addition, the vessel was found to contain asbestos, which is a safety hazard.

But there are other operational problems. The vessel’s age will result in mechanical failures... do we have parts? Do we have know-how? The vessel is also considerably slow – her top speed is of 17 knots and given the propensity of mechanical failure, she could probably not even muster that speed. There is no dock at the back to launch rhibs, which are essential in SAR operations and added to that, she does not have much open deck space on the stern to accommodate those who are being rescued.

She takes a crew of over 40, whereas the Diciotti needs a crew of 25. Where are those extra bodies going to be found? There are also issues of fuel efficiency, maintenance costs, docking space - given the lack of space at the Maritime Sqaudron’s Haywharf base. And on a final note, this was made to look like Ireland was giving Malta a fine asset and rather than sell it, it was to be given to help in saving lives. It was not. The reality was that it was up for auction, but when the auction time passed, the auction house was given instructions to dispose of the vessel if no buyer had been found. Lo and behold, an announcement was made that it had been donated to Malta. The government’s intentions were good, but foresight, it seems, was not so good. Time will tell.