Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM) and Vigor (Team RB-M) have delivered the first three of a six vessel RB-M contract to the U.S. Coast Guard. The 45'x14.7' boats are part of a Foreign Military Sale to The Kingdom of Bahrain’s Coast Guard. Hulls four through six are expected to ship in 2020. A total of 182 RB-Ms have been built by Team RB-M.
FMM was the prime contractor and program manager. Vigor fabricated the vessels at its Seattle facility using high temp resistant aluminum. The RB-M’s were upgraded with an Arabian Gulf hot weather package that includes additional air conditioning, thermal insulation and an aft deck GRP canopy. Their primary missions are patrol and search and rescue.
Key features of the boats include a 92000 BTU HVAC system, Rolls Royce Kamewa FF375S waterjets and two MTU series 60, 825-hp engines. The RB-M has a top speed of more than 42 knots and mission duration of up to 24 hours.
“We’re proud to support the U.S. Coast Guard as they assist allies and partners worldwide through the foreign military sales program,” Jan Allman, CEO of FMM, said in a statement announcing the delivery. “Our work with Vigor has been good for both companies and the Coast Guard, but more importantly, it has given our international partners the highest quality, dependable, response boats made in America.”
“Vigor is honored to provide the Bahrain Coast Guard (BCG) with vessels that consistently deliver proven performance in the most extreme weather conditions. We are confident they will help BCG effectively achieve its important mission objectives in the Arabian Gulf.” said Bill Blount, Vigor director, international sales.
