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The Australian government has handed over two additional special-purpose aluminum fast boats to the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) to assist with patrol and response operations at the western border.
The 9.2-metre long vessels, funded through Australia's Defense Cooperation Program, will enhance the RSIPF's maritime surveillance and support its delivery of remote policing.
The high-speed boats are able to operate in conjunction with larger patrol boats and coordinate with aerial surveillance. The new boats can also operate in shallow waters, increasing the RSIPF's fast response capabilities in hard-to-reach areas.
Australia's Defence Cooperation Program will provide training, maintenance, and sustainment support to the RSIPF.
The two new boats cost approximately SBD2.4 million (US$299,000) plus training and maintenance funding support. They are each fitted with four Yamaha F200BETX outboard engines, two 200-litre fuel tanks, radar, and VHF radios.
The vessels were built by Aluminium Longboats of Queensland.
