Reef Patrol Boat Reef Resilience

15 Aug Reef Patrol Boat Reef Resilience

The Department of Environment and Science (DES) of Queensland, Australia, recently took delivery of a new patrol vessel for use in the waters of the Great Barrier Reef.

Built by Norman R. Wright and Sons of Murarrie, Reef Resilience will service the southern region of the reef from its homeport in Gladstone. Its duties will include compliance monitoring, marine park and island national park management, diving support, and research operations.

The designer said the vessel will also be able to operate in remote offshore waters within the Australian exclusive economic zone (EEZ) for extended periods of up to three months.

Dan Mace, Incat Crowther Technical Manager, said the aluminium vessel features a new hull form that was designed to handle strong winds and 3 metre significant wave heights up to 200 nautical miles off the Queensland coast. The hull will also help eliminate slamming, which often occurs during long transits at 20 speeds of knots in the same waters.

In addition to ensuring improved stability, these attributes help minimise the craft’s environmental impact, enabling it to operate safely and effectively without any adverse effects on the highly sensitive marine environment in and around the world-famous reef.

Like its sister vessel Reef Ranger, which was delivered to the DES in 2019, Reef Resilience has an LOA of 23.99 metres, a beam of 9.5 metres, a depth of 3.95 metres, and a maximum draught of 2.28 metres.

The vessel is powered by two MAN D2862 LE463 main engines that each produce 749 kW at 1,950 rpm. The engines drive a pair of fixed-pitch propellers to deliver a cruising speed of 20 knots and a maximum speed of 27 knots, making it possible for DES crews to respond quickly to developing situations within the agency’s areas of responsibility. A maximum fuel tank capacity of 18,000 litres allows the catamaran to conduct patrols and other missions of extended duration far from shore.