Gizo in the Austal shipyards in Henderson, Western Australia.
History
Solomon Islands
NamesakeGizo
OperatorRoyal Solomon Islands Police Force
Yard number525
Acquired8 November 2019[1]
Commissioned19 December 2019
HomeportAola Base, Point Cruz (Honiara)
Identification
StatusIn service
General characteristics
TypePatrol boat
Length39.5 m (129 ft 7 in)
Beam8 m (26 ft 3 in)
Draught2.5 m (8 ft 2 in)
Propulsion2 × Caterpillar 3516C diesels, 2 shafts
Speed20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Range3,000 nmi (5,600 km; 3,500 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement23
Sensors and
processing systems
  • X-band radar
  • differential GPS
  • gyrocompass
  • depth sounding machine
  • Electronic Chart Display and Information System
  • autopilot

RSIPV Gizo (05) is a Guardian-class patrol boat in service with the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force Maritime Department. She was the fifth boat of her class to be completed.[1][2][3][4] Australian officials officially handed her over to representatives of the Solomon Islands on 8 November 2019, at the Austal shipyard in Henderson, Western Australia.

She is the first of two Guardian-class vessels that Australia provided to the Solomon Islands, and replaced RSIPV Lata.[5][6] Her sister ship is RSIPV Taro.

Background

Pacific-class patrol boat
Pacific class RSIPV Lata

Following the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Pacific Islands nations found themselves in need of capable yet economical vessels to patrol their exclusive economic zones. In an effort to improve regional maritime security as well as diplomatic relations with the island states, the Australian government launched the Pacific Patrol Boat Program in 1983, in which they would build and gift 22 Pacific-class patrol boats to 12 Pacific Island nations over the next 14 years.[7] The patrol boats were built with commercial off-the-shelf-components in order to ease maintenance costs for the island nations. Australia remained involved with maintaining the class for the next three decades, with a refit after 15 years of operation.

The Royal Solomon Islands Police Force received RSIPV Lata in 1988 and her sister ship RSIPV Auki in 1991, and would operate both for the next three decades. During a period of ethnic violence, Lata was reportedly commandeered by rebels in June 2000, and used to bombard the capital Honiara.[8] Lata was decommissioned in Honiara on 11 September 2019, before RSIPV Gizo was delivered in December.[9]

The Australian government announced the Pacific Patrol Boat Replacement Project on 17 June 2014.[10] A contract for the construction of at least 19 boats and an initial seven-year maintenance and support period was signed with Austal on 4 May 2016.[11][12][13] The keel of the first vessel was laid on 30 July 2017, before she was launched on 30 May 2018.[13][14][15][16][17]

    Design

    Aerial view of HMPNGS Rochus Lokinap
    Aerial view of HMPNGS Rochus Lokinap moored at Manus, Papua New Guinea, on 14 August 2022 (Photo by US Coast Guard)

    The Guardian class uses a steel monohull design based on that of the Bay class, which had been in service with the Australian Border Force since 1999.[11][18] The patrol boats are 39.5 metres (129 ft 7 in) long with two habitable internal decks below the bridge.[7] They are capable of traveling 3,000 nautical miles (5,600 km; 3,500 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph), and have a maximum speed of 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph). They have two Caterpillar 3516C 2,000-kilowatt (2,700 hp) diesel engines powering two fixed-pitch propellers.[13][19] A key design goal being ease of maintenance to accommodate small and isolated shipyards, the class uses commercial off-the-shelf components.[13] They are slightly larger and more capable than the Pacific class.

    In addition to the commanding officer's quarters, the boats have seven living quarters designed to berth 20 crew members. Three of them are staterooms that have their own showers in order to accommodate a mixed-sex crew. They also have a sick bay with a separate ventilation system, which during normal operations is used as two berths, bringing the total complement up to 23.[7][20]

    The vessels have a stern launching ramp for a WRH635 fast rescue boat.[7][13][18][21] These are SOLAS-certified rigid-hulled inflatable boats designed to carry up to 15 persons. They are 6.35 metres (20 ft 10 in) long, with two Yamaha 67 kW (90 hp) outboard motors and an operational weight of 2,612.5 kilograms (5,760 lb).[22][23] The stern is also equipped with a port side crane serving a 16-square-metre (170 sq ft) cargo deck.[13][19]

    Australia instructed that the boats would be delivered without armament, but they were designed to be capable of mounting an autocannon of up to 30 millimetres (1.2 in) on their foredeck, and a 0.50-calibre machine gun both port and starboard in front of the bridge.[7]

    In June 2022, three design flaws were reported in the media. This included cracking in the coupling between the engine and the gear box, the sick bay ventilation system recirculating air and an exhaust leak causing carbon monoxide to enter the normally non-crewed engine compartment.[24][25][26]

      Role

      According to Mostyn Mangau Solomon Islands Deputy Commissioner of Police: "This new boat is purposely to conduct maritime surveillance and enforcement operations like fighting illegal fishing, search and rescue for distress boats, VIP escorts and other border operations."[27][28]

      Operational career

      Gizo was officially commissioned on 19 December 2019.[29] VIPs attending the commissioning included Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, Minister of Police, National Security and Correctional Services Anthony Veke and Australian High Commissioner Sally Anne Vincent. Acting Police Commissioner Mostyn Mangau called Gizo "the pride of the fleet".[28] Gizo was joined by HMAS Maryborough on her maiden voyage.[30] The crews of the two vessels conducted joint training exercises on the voyage.

      References

      1. 1 2 "Australia supports Solomon Island's security priorities". Mirage News. 8 November 2019. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019. The Australian Government has today handed over the latest Guardian-class Patrol Boat RSIPV Gizo to the Solomon Islands at a ceremony in Henderson, Western Australia.
      2. ↑ Stephen Kuper (9 November 2019). "Australia delivers next Guardian patrol boat to Solomon Islands". Defence Connect. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said the handover of the patrol boat reinforced Solomon Islands' position as one of Australia's key partners in the Pacific region.
      3. ↑ Gabriel Dominguez (8 November 2019). "Australia hands over Guardian-class patrol boat to Solomon Islands". Jane's Defence Weekly. London. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019. The Guardian class has an overall length of 39.5 m, a beam of 8 m, and can accommodate a crew of 23. It is powered by two Caterpillar 3516C engines and can attain a top speed of 20 kt.
      4. ↑ Xavier Vavasseur (8 November 2019). "Austal Delivers Guardian-Class Patrol Boat RSIPV Gizo For Solomon Islands". Naval News. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. The RSIPV Gizo is one of two Guardian Class Patrol Boats to be delivered to and operated by the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force, replacing the RSIPV Lata that has been in service since 1988.
      5. ↑ "Timor Leste's future Patrol Boats". Monch Publishing Group. 19 April 2018. Archived from the original on 3 April 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2018. The PICS will receive their new patrol boats as follows: Cook Islands (1 vessel); Federated States of Micronesia (2 vessels); Fiji (2 vessels); Kiribati (1 vessel); Palau (1 vessel); Papua New Guinea (4 vessels); Republic of the Marshall Islands (1 vessel); Samoa (1 vessel); Solomon Islands (2 vessels); Timor Leste (2 vessels); Tonga (2 vessels); Tuvalu (1 vessel); Vanuatu (1 vessel).
      6. ↑ "RSIPF thank Australian gov't". Solomon Star News. 15 June 2018. Archived from the original on 21 July 2018. Retrieved 16 June 2018. Commissioner Varley explains: "The new Guardian class of patrol boats will be much larger with increased capacity and extended range compared to the current Pacific class of patrol boats. This will be great especially for patrolling of Solomon Islands large maritime border."
      7. 1 2 3 4 5 "Australia's Defence Engagement in the Pacific: 2016 Defence White Paper". Australian Navy. 2016. Archived from the original on 22 January 2018. Retrieved 22 April 2018. The Pacific Patrol Boats are gifted by Australia as sovereign assets, and have enabled Pacific Island countries to take an active role in securing their own borders and resources – to the benefit of the region overall. The PPBs are used to undertake a wide range of tasks, from fisheries enforcement, to Search and rescue, to movement of ballot boxes.
      8. ↑ "Pacific patrol boat program". Nautilus Institute. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 10 September 2019. The Defence Co-operation Program became controversial through the 1990s with Australian supplied patrol boats and helicopters used for the blockade of Bougainville. Australian military aid to the PNGDF in the early limited the ways in which Australia was perceived as an honest broker in ending the conflict. In June 2000, the Australian-supplied patrol boat Lata in Solomon Islands was also used by Malaitan militias to attack Guadalcanal villages.
      9. ↑ "Solomons patrol boat decommissioned after 31 years of service". Radio New Zealand. 11 September 2019. Archived from the original on 11 September 2019. Retrieved 13 September 2019. Work is underway to extend the wharf at the police maritime base at Point Cruz in preparation for the new patrol boat, which is at least 10 metres longer than the current ones.
      10. ↑
      11. 1 2
      12. ↑
      13. 1 2 3 4 5 6
      14. ↑
      15. ↑
      16. ↑
      17. ↑
      18. 1 2
      19. 1 2 "Austal Pacific Patrol Boat 40" (PDF). Austal. May 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 September 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018. Austal will design, construct and deliver the 19 steel-hulled patrol boats (valued at $280 million) to 12 Pacific Island nations. The contract includes an option for two additional vessels.
      20. ↑
      21. ↑
      22. ↑
      23. ↑
      24. ↑
      25. ↑
      26. ↑
      27. ↑ "Mangau: new patrol boat will benefit us". Solomon Star News. 16 November 2019. Archived from the original on 16 November 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019. This new boat is purposely to conduct maritime surveillance and enforcement operations like fighting illegal fishing, search and rescue for distress boats, VIP escorts and other border operations.
      28. 1 2 "Maritime Boosted with Commissioning of new Guardian Class Patrol Boat Gizo". Solomon Times. 19 December 2019. Archived from the original on 21 December 2019. Retrieved 26 March 2020. 'To the Director RSIPF Maritime, the captain and crew of our new Guardian Class Patrol Boat Gizo, you bear a great responsibility for the use and safekeeping of this vessel. I commend your efforts in delivering PB Gizo to our shores on in its maiden voyage. This vessel is the pride of our fleet and will protect our borders and support our neighbours,' says Acting Commissioner Mangau.
      29. ↑ "RSIPF maritime boosted with commissioning of new Guardian class patrol boat GIZO". Solomon Star News. 19 December 2019. Archived from the original on 20 December 2019. Retrieved 19 December 2019. The maritime capability of the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force has been boosted with the commissioning of the new Guardian class patrol boat, 05 GIZO during a ceremony in Honiara today.
      30. ↑ Todd Fitzgerald (3 January 2020). "Patrol boats the guardians of regional security and stability". Navy Daily. Archived from the original on 28 March 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2020. Cross-decking, as it is known in naval jargon, is practised by navies all over the world and is designed to improve the personal and professional development of those fortunate enough to be selected. It is also a sign of diplomacy and trust between participating vessels.
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