It is off the coast of Malaysia, on Rebak Island, that Zodiac Milpro has decided to invite a handful of local special teams for a seminar devoted entirely to the ZH1300 Interceptor. The opportunity for the century-old company to unveil the partnerships that will allow him to offer the perfect balance between modularity, stability, responsiveness, speed and firepower. MBDA, FN Herstal, Volvo Penta, DCI, Seakeeper, etc.: Zodiac Milpro has been able to add some nuggets to present a customizable solution according to the needs of the end user.
Unveiled in 2018, the Interceptor is based on a Mach 2 (Military Air Channeled Hull 2) aluminium hull, designed to reduce friction and provide better stability. A natively multimissions platform, this boat is equipped with dual consoles, a reconfigurable deck and a payload capacity of 600 kg. Its four Mercury Verado 2 350 hp engines allow a maximum speed of 60 knots for a range of 400 nm.
The capability portfolio of the ZH1300 actually goes well beyond these few figures, starting with the integration of the MBDA MMP (Missile Moyenne Portée), announced during Euronaval 2018. The evaluation campaign conducted in October 2018 the French Navy ECUME RHIB confirmed that the MMP is indeed perfectly suited to « missions against hostile ships or against coastal defenses or armored vehicles, particularly in support of small units or special forces landing”, declared MBDA.
“There is no specific expression of need in the region [ASEAN], but the issue of integration on small fast patrol boats has become a recurring issue since sea trials,” MBDA confirms. Prospecting in the ASEAN region is all the more relevant as it consists of a myriad of islands and is located in the heart of one of the densest maritime corridors on the planet. Piracy, or even a hidden terrorism, are present, both likely to threaten major trade routes.
In addition to the MMP, Zodiac Milpro is considering the integration of a Sea deFNder remotely-operated weapon station, developed by FN Herstal. Proposed in its 12.7 mm version, the RWS would logically take the place on the front of the cabin, the shooter then recovering one of the two available control stations. However, this configuration on the front of the boat is by far the less stable and is considerably limiting the angle of fire. FN and Zodiac Milpro therefore plan to install the Sea deFNder on the cabin’s roof to gain elevation and take full advantage of optical sensors while allowing a 360 ° shooting angle.
