VESSEL REFIT | KI Ross – QLD Fisheries patrol flagship back in action

The Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries flagship vessel KI Ross has returned to the water to perform compliance duties after undergoing an extensive refit.

As part of a contract awarded by the Queensland Government, onsite contractors at Rivergate Marina have completed a half-life refit on the largest vessel in the Queensland Boating and Fisheries patrol fleet.

The refit saw KI Ross’ two 820-kilowatt V12 Caterpillar engines and Twin Disc gearboxes serviced back to original condition and all wheelhouse electronics replaced with state-of-the-art new technology.

The 24-metre KI Ross is capable of patrolling 200 nautical miles out to sea, with a key focus on compliance in the East Coast Trawl fishery, which contributes $170 million annually to Queensland’s economy.

Built in Geraldton, Western Australia, in 1999, it patrols the offshore waters between the New South Wales border to Bowen in Northern Queensland. The vessel is often used in joint patrols with Maritime Safety Queensland and Australian Maritime Safety Authority to stop non-compliant behaviour by recreational and commercial fishers.

The patrol boat was named after deceased district officer Kenneth Ivan Ross who started as a fisheries patrol officer in the late 1960s and progressed through the ranks to district officer at Yeppoon.

Ken was a skipper of many of the Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol’s offshore vessels working in wide-ranging areas from Moreton Bay to the Torres Strait.

“Skippered by Senior Field Officer Cherelle Broughton, the vessel and her crew of five fisheries officers are back on board and preparing for patrols off the Queensland coast,” said Minister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries Mark Furner.

The Queensland Government contract also included the refurbishment of three Fisheries Queensland inflatable boats – Dogtooth, Nudgee and Paluma, allowing the outboards on each boat to be replaced, as well as new electronics packages to be installed. All three boats received new tubes, covers and paint, and Paluma’s trailer was also replaced.