RV Triton

The Research Vessel "Triton" is a trimaran vessel owned by Gardline Marine Sciences Limited and a former prototype British warship demonstrator for the UK's Defence Evaluation and Research Agency. She was built as a technology demonstrator ship for the Royal Navy's Future Surface Combatant, and has been used to both prove the viability of the hull-form and as a trials platform for other QinetiQ innovations. [cite web|url=http://www.naval-technology.com/projects/trimaran/|title=QinetiQ - Triton Trimaran Research Ship, United Kingdom|accessdate=2008-07-25]

The "Triton" name is a reference to the maritime god Triton who carried the three pronged spear, the trident, which relates to the vessel's three parallel hulls. The outriggers are thinner and much shorter than the dominant central hull.

ervice with DERA and QinetiQ

The "Triton" was designed as a demonstrator to prove that the trimaran concept would work successfully in a large warship. Following her launch in 2000, the ship began an extensive series of trials in 2001, which covered general ship handling, performance, sea-keeping behaviour, but also more specific areas to its design that the Royal Navy had no experience of — for example, a series of docking manoeuvres were undertaken by the pilot boats of HMNB Portsmouth to determine the problems of docking a large trimaran, while the ship underwent underway replenishment alongside HMS "Argyll" and the tanker RFA "Brambleleaf" to ascertain the characteristics of a trimaran and a monohull replenishing at the same time. The "Triton" also undertook the first helicopter take off and landing on a trimaran. [ [http://www.naval-technology.com/projects/trimaran/ Naval Technology - Triton Trimaran Research Ship, United Kingdom ] ]

RV "Triton" was present at the International Festival of the Sea in 2001, but visitors were not permitted on board.

ervice with Gardline Marine Sciences Limited

Following the end of the Future Surface Combatant project, it was decided that the "Triton" was no longer necessary, so in 2005, she was sold to Gardline Marine Sciences Limited and has been converted into a multi-role survey vessel; among other projects she is being used as part of the Civil Hydrography Programme on behalf of the United Kingdom's Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

Australian service

In December 2006, Gardline contracted the "Triton" to the Australian Customs Service to patrol Australia's northern waters as one of the service's fleet of patrol vessels. "Triton" has been fitted with two .50 calibre machine guns and carries up to 28 armed customs officers. The ship arrived from the UK in mid-January 2007 and started operations immediately [ [http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200612/s1808928.htm Three-hulled warship to patrol north coast] ] .

ee also

* Future Surface Combatant
* USS Independence (LCS-2)

References

External links

* http://www.naval-technology.com/projects/trimaran/
* http://www.gardlinemarinesciences.com/vessel_triton.asp