The ceremony was held at the Western Baltic Shipyard in Klaipeda, Lithuania, and officially launched the construction of the series of four OPVs meant to replace the current Sentinel-class. The order from Singapore’s MoD was placed last year for a delivery of the four vessels from 2028 and onwards. Even though the Western Baltic Shipyard is in charge of the construction, it is with Fassmer Defence that the contract was signed.
This new class of OPV is based on Fassmer’s OPV 80 design as used by the German Bundespolizei (Federal Police) for its Potsdam class of offshore patrol vessels.
“Last Friday, we reached an important milestone in the construction of our new Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) for the Singapore Navy. The official steel-cutting ceremony marked the start of construction of these modern vessels, which will make a significant contribution to maritime safety. This day not only marks the start of the physical build, but also symbolizes the dedication and passion we put into this order to meet the needs of our customers. We look forward to continuing to build these state-of-the-art vessels over the coming months, and to reaching the next milestones on the road to completion.”
Fassmer via LinkedIn – 10/16/2024.
The Potsdam Class Offshore Patrol Vessel
The Potsdam class of offshore patrol vessels is currently composed of four ships, Potsdam, Bamberg, Bad Düben and Neustadt. Neustadt is the last ship to have entered service, being commissioned in June 2023.
The vessels are 86.02 meters long and 13.42 meters wide. They are all powered by two Wartsila diesel engines that each generate 4,080 kilowatts, augmented by two 600 kW electric motors, driving controllable pitch propellers that propel them to a top speed of 21 knots.
All vessels are equipped with a single BAE Systems Bofors 57 Mk3 57mm gun as their main armament, with two .50 caliber machine guns as additional armament.
Vessels of the Potsdam class are equipped with a helicopter landing deck that can accommodate the Federal Police’s Airbus Helicopters H215 Super Puma, and have internal room for five mission containers.
The Sentinel Class Maritime Security and Response Vessel
The Sentinel class is composed of MSRV Sentinel, MSRV Guardian, MSRV Protector and MSRV Bastion. All four vessels are refurbished and renamed Fearless-class patrol vessels that were previously in service with the Republic of Singapore Navy, serving with its Maritime Security and Response Flotilla after their refurbishing.
The 55 meter-long vessels retain the Fearless-class’ main armament of a single OTO Melara 76mm naval gun. As part of their refurbishment, the Sentinel class received a Typhoon 25mm naval gun system at the stern and 7.62mm machine gun positions near the bridge wings.
The Sentinel class are equipped with long-range acoustic device (LRAD) and laser dazzler systems for non-lethal options. The superstructures of the vessels have been upgraded with a modular ballistic protection system, while their hulls have been strengthened with fenders so they can come alongside vessels of interest.
Two of the Sentinel-class’ non-refurbished siblings, the former RSS Brave and RSS Gallant, were transferred as a gift to the Royal Brunei Navy in March this year. In Bruneian service, the RSS Brave is now the KDB As-Siddiq, with the RSS Gallant becoming the KDB Al-Faruq.
