Tayfun Ozberk story with additional reporting by Xavier Vavasseur
Port of Tacoma underlined that the delivery was completed earlier this month, but didn’t mention the exact date.
“This boat is the first of eight that SAFE Boats will be creating and outfitting under contract with the U.S. Navy for Ukraine. They plan to complete this commission by increasing their workforce by up to 75 new positions, primarily at their Tacoma facility.”
Port of Tacoma
For the record, the United States’ State Department approved a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to the Government of Ukraine of up to 16 Mark VI Patrol Boats and related equipment for an estimated cost of $600 million back in June 2020. The U.S. Department of Defense on 5 January 2021 awarded SAFE Boats International a US$ 19 million order to start production of Ukraine’s first two Mk VI Patrol Boats. Eight months later NAVSEA awarded SAFE Boats International a US$ 84 million contract modification for the delivery of six more Mk VI patrol boats, with an option for an additional two boats.
As Naval News reported earlier this month, the U.S. Navy’s fleet of 12 MK VI Patrol Boats is no longer active. Pictures taken last Summer by Chris Cavas show a number of the vessels stored at a Fairlead facility in Newport News near Norfolk, Virginia.
A U.S. Navy spokesperson told us back in August 2021:
“The MK VIs will be returned to the Boat Inventory Manager in the continental U.S. for final disposition. The Navy continues to assess options for final disposition, including the potential transition to another service or another U.S. government agency, nomination for Foreign Military Sales, or placement into long-term storage.”
Meawhile, another type of patrol boat, the (smaller) 40 foot (12.2 meters) long ‘40 Defiant’ had already been delivered to the Ukrainian Navy and are already patrolling the Black Sea. These were built by Metal Shark in Franklin, Louisiana:
About Mk VI patrol boat
The Mark VI is a class of patrol boat designed and built by SAFE Boats international since 2015. Their main purposes are littoral and riverine surveillance but is reconfigurable to embark special forces or medical facility. The rear deck is able to launch and recover a small UAV or UUV. The U.S. Navy is the only user of this class of boat and owns twelve of them.
Main specifications
- Displacement: 72 tonnes
- Length: 25.8m
- Draft: 20.5m
- Propulsion: 2 x MTU 5200 horse power
- Speed: 45 knots
- Range: 750 nautical miles at 25 knots
- Crew: 10
- Weapons: 2 x MK 38 Mod 2 25mm chain guns. The mount can change depending on the mission. According to the FMS notice, the Ukrainian Navy boats will be fitted with the Mk44 Bushmaster II which is a 30mm chain gun.
