Skjold class patrol boat

The "Skjold" class patrol boats (skjold means "shield" in Norwegian) is a new class of superfast, large stealth missile craft, also known as MTBs (missile torpedo boats). This design is completely Norwegian, and they are built at the Umoe Mandal yard. They are among the fastest warships in the world and can reach speeds of up to 60 knots / 110 km/h.

Development and Production

The Skjold Class vessels began with the development of the Norwegian Navy's "Project SMP 6081", and the first preproduction version was ordered on 30 August 1996. The first of its class, the P960 "Skjold", was launched on 22 September 1998 and commissioned on 17 April 1999. The Norwegian Parliament's White Paper of 2001 recommended the building of five additional ships, which was confirmed in 2002. Ultimately the "Skjold" class MTBs will consist of six ships, 4 having already been launched in early 2008. The remaining two are currently under construction. Ship # 2,"Storm", was to be delivered in April 2008. Following that, one new ship will be delivered every three months until "Gnist" is delivered in June 2009. Once full production has been completed the six Skjold-Class MTBs will suppliment the Norwegian Navy's existing pool of fourteen "Hauk class" MTBs, the latter soon to be retired.

Design

To ensure stealth capabilities, anechoic coatings of radar absorbent materials (RAM) have been used in the load-bearing structures over large areas of the ship. This strategy leads to significant weight saving compared to the conventional construction technique of applying RAM cladding to the external surfaces. The ship's profile has a faceted appearance with no right angle structures and few orientations of reflective panels. Doors and hatches are flush with the surfaces and the windows are flush without visible coaming (edge of window aperture) and are fitted with radar reflective screens.

The final design will see some changes compared to the prototype "Skjold", which itself is being rebuilt to the new specifications. Most notably, the new vessels will use 4 gas turbines, two large ones and two small ones, giving greater power. The two MTU 123 cruise diesel propulsion units used previously for loiter speeds have been removed. Furthermore, the foredeck will be strengthened due to the addition of the 76 mm Super Rapid gun. The production of the hull material is being done using a different method to improve its strength and minimize fire vulnerability. The bridge will see some changes, including an upgrade to six weapon systems control consoles. Heavyweight torpedos may also be included.

US Navy

The U.S. Navy and Coast Guard expressed interest in the design and leased the P960 for a period of one year, from 2001 until 2002. During that time it was operated by a 14-man Norwegian crew out of Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek.

Vessels

See also

* List of ships of the Norwegian Navy

imiliar ships

*Houbei class missile boat
*Visby class corvette

References

*Saunders, Stephen "Jane's Fighting Ships 2003-2004" ISBN 0 7106 2546 4

External links

* [http://www.knmskjold.org/english/index.html Unofficial webpage by the KNM Skjold crew (english)]
* [http://www.mil.no/sjo/nye_mtber/start/;jsessionid=DKFD4KWNSMALRFOUN3NCFEQ?_requestid=6249299 Official Skjold-class webpage from the Norwegian Armed Forces]
* [http://youtube.com/watch?v=zT1xbIlRXCc You tube video of Skjold navigating narrow waters]
* [http://www.safetycenter.navy.mil/MEDIA/fathom/issues/JanMar03/isskjold.htm 2003 Navy document on lease of Skjold] [http://www.safetycenter.navy.mil/media/fathom/issues/JanMar03/pdf/isknm.PDF PDF version] )
* Leo Lazauskas (2008) [http://www.cyberiad.net/library/pdf/giam260a0.pdf "Performance characteristics of a 260t displacement SES"] . Dept. Applied Mathematics Report, The University of Adelaide, 19 Feb. 2008.