Colombia’s Cotecmar to launch new Light River Support Patrol Boat in September

The Colombian shipyard Cotecmar is in the preparatory phase to launch the new Light Fluvial Support Patrol Boat (PAF-L) of the Colombian Navy (ARC).

This stage will take place in mid-September -in the waters of the port of Cartagena de Indias – after which the HAT (Harbour Acceptance Trials) phase will begin, followed by the SAT (Sea Acceptance Trials), before its delivery for operational deployment.

INCREMENTAL DESIGN

The new PAF has a detailed series of improvements in its design (according to technical specifications ET-3240-B), including the relocation of the crew cabins, as well as a considerable increase in its storage capacity for supplies and cargo, with a greater accommodation capacity for temporary passengers, additionally reducing the total weight, thanks to changes in several systems for technological innovation, thus making the vessel able to access shallower drafts.

Likewise, the engines have been changed for larger ones, preserving the efficiency and power supplied, keeping the Scorpion fire control system that integrates two 12.7×99 mm Browning M2HB machine guns and two 7.62×51 mm US Ordnance M-60E4 machine guns.

The PAF-L is an armored vessel with a length of 30 meters and a molded beam of seven meters, with a 3.1-meter depth at the first deck and a draft at a maximum load of one meter, with a range of up to 12 days and a range of up to 1,560 kilometers at speeds of up to 9 knots (17.7 kilometers per hour), with a crew of 43 officers, non-commissioned officers, sailors, and marines.

With information from InfoDefensa

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