Austal has delivered the fourth of 21 Guardian Class vessels that the company has designed and built for Australia’s Pacific Maritime Security Program.
The vessel was delivered to the Australian Department of Defence, which subsequently presented it to the Government of Samoa during a handover ceremony at Austal’s Henderson shipyard.
Austal Chief Executive Officer David Singleton said the Pacific Patrol Boat Replacement Program, which was awarded to Austal in May 2016, supports more than 200 direct jobs at Austal and more than 200 indirect jobs through the Australian industry involved in the program.
“We are very proud to be delivering this program, on time and on budget, that will continue out to 2023,” Mr Singleton continued.
“These vessels will be supported with ongoing maintenance from Austal’s Service Centre Operations in Cairns and creates opportunities for Austal in the Pacific more broadly.
“The Guardian Class has also been an important program for Austal’s Australian business as the GCPB is Austal’s first major steel shipbuilding program and is also now a key sustainment operation.”
