Germans launch first of two SWATH ships for Customs

The 49.35m long and 19m wide twin-hulled SWATH , which has a side height of 9m and displaces 1,000 tons, is for delivery in the spring and will be followed by its sister in November, also from Emden based NSW. The superstructure was transported from the NSW building hall to a special floating dock and lowered onto the hulls.SWATH ships are proving increasingly popular in Germany for a wide range of water based official duties because of their excellent stability and seagoing characteristics.

These latest vessels, the first of their size for Customs, are the most recent in a series of SWATH ships built by German shipyards in recent years. They were ordered in 2006 by the Procurement Office of the Federal German Customs Administration for surveillance, humanitarian and SAR assistance tasks.

Helgoland has a diesel-electric propulsion system (IEPS) with a very high redundancy level and low fuel consumption. The system comprises four MTU Type 16V4000 gensets, each with an effective shaft output of 2,200 kW, for a combined 8800 kW. Two 3,800 kW E-motors, one in each float, together supply 7,600 kW to drive the propellers and provide 20 knots which can be maintained for long periods at sea.

Helgoland also boasts an integrated monitoring control system (IMCS), balanced rudders, bow thrusters and a mission control centre featuring a remote controlled thermal imaging camera, X and S band navigation radars, ECDS and GPS.

NSW is part of Germany’s biggest shipyard group, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, which also includes Blohm + Voss and HDW. In 2005 NSW delivered the 73m research and military equipment testing ship Planet, still the biggest SWATH vessel so far built in Germany.

By Tom Todd