Defiant-class patrol vessel

For other uses, see Defiant class.

The United States is building 13 small patrol vessels, based on the Damen Stan 2606 patrol vessel design, for small Caribbean nations, to be known as the Defiant class.^[1][2][3] The United States Navy, which will play an oversight role in the ship's construction, also calls the design Near Coastal Patrol Vessels. The $54 million contract was awarded to Metal Shark Boats of Louisiana.^[4]

PM-15
Class overview
Name	Near Coastal Patrol Vessel
Builders	Metal Shark Boats, Louisiana
Cost	US$9 million
Built	2018–present
Planned	13
Active	4
General characteristics
Type	Patrol boat
Displacement	55 tonne
Length	26.59 m (87 ft 3 in)
Beam	6.05 m (19 ft 10 in)
Draft	1.45 m (4 ft 9 in)
Propulsion	2 × Caterpillar C32 diesels, 2 shafts
Speed	25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph)
Range	706 nmi (1,308 km; 812 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement	10

Partner nations include Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama and Guatemala.^[5][6]

Like the United States Coast Guard's very successful Marine Protector class, also based on the Damen 2606 design, the Defiant-class vessels are to be equipped with a stern launching ramp.^[7][8][9]

The vessels will be able to accommodate a crew of ten or more—similar to the Marine Protector class.^[3] The vessels are powered by a pair of C32 Caterpillar 2,000 shaft horsepower (1,500 kW) diesel engines.

Delivery

Delivery of Defiant-class patrol vessels

name	operator	homeport	commissioned	retirement	notes
Betelgeuse	Dominican Navy	Santo Domingo	2020-08-06[10]		Betelgeuse GC-102 is the second ship in the Dominican Republic Navy to bear this name. The handover was attended by Emilio Recio Segura, Estanislao Gonell Regalado, Richard Vásquez Jiménez and Ney Aldrín Bautista Almonte, the senior officers in the Dominican Navy, Army, Air Force and National Police.[11]
Río Aguán	Honduran Navy		2021-07-09[12]
Patrullero 15	Navy of El Salvador		2021-07-22[13]
Gral. Omar Torrijos	National Aeronaval Service of Panama		2021-12-02[14]
Soberanía I	Costa Rican National Coast Guard Service		2023-04-01[15]

See also

• Pacific-class patrol boat in the late 1980s Australia provided its neighbours with small patrol vessels
• Guardian-class patrol boat Australia is replacing the patrol vessels it provided its neighbours.