France’s Alu Marine shipyard is currently building a fast launch for pilots on the River Seine, which will enter into service in March.

The vessel is designed to embark Baie de Seine pilots on board merchant ships sailing upstream to Rouen. Developed in collaboration with Geronimo Naval Design, the boat’s specifications have been carefully studied to optimise performance and reliability, while minimising running costs, especially fuel consumption. The boat will measure 12.37 metres in length overall, with a beam of 4.16 metres and a draught of 1.0 metres. Built in aluminium, this craft will be not only extremely robust, but economical to run and maintain.

Both light and powerful, the craft will be capable of rapid turnarounds at a service speed of 30 knots and will boast a maximum sped of 34 knots. The launch will be fitted with an integral Volvo IPS 450 Pods system, which combines high performance, economy and manoeuvrability in all conditions. This revolutionary system offers the best propeller propulsion efficiency to date for a vessel of this size sailing at this speed.

The boat design has been carefully evolved to ensure good stability, even in the choppy seas of the Seine estuary. With a straight bow and a fine entry planing hull, combined with the moderate V-shape underwater, the launch is designed to plane and handle seas very efficiently. The crew will include a captain seconded by a mechanic and four pilots. The boat is designed to conform to French regulations for crafts less than 12 metres in length and inspected by Bureau Veritas – registered in the category of navigation 3.