United States will hand over three more Island-class patrol boats to Ukrainian Navy.

On January 28, 2020, representatives of the Ukrainian Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard start negotiating in Odesa the transfer to Ukraine of more U.S.-made Island-class patrol boats, Navy press centre reports.

The US government has donated three former Coast Guard vessels, including two Island-class patrol boats, to the Ukrainian Navy; three more patrol boats are to follow (Picture source: UKR MoD)

The Ukrainian side is represented by the head of the shipbuilding department of the command of the Navy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Captain 1st Rank Vasyl Radchuk, while the U.S. delegation is led by Tony Correale, Military Sales Case ManagerUnited States Coast Guard.

The event lasts for three days in the format of conferences and negotiations with the development of a transfer plan for the needs of the Ukrainian Navy, an additional three Island type boats.

It is important to note that one of the issues of the meeting is the discussion of the possibility of preparing boats for the transfer and training of crews at the expense of the foreign side, as well as the possibility of additional training of Ukrainian instructors on the basis of the US Coast Guard military unit in Baltimore, which should further provide a full training cycle for future crews based on already received Island boats directly in Ukraine.

Captain 1st Rank Vasyl Radchuk expressed hope that by the end of 2020 the boats will be fully ready to receive the crew that Ukraine will send for training in early 2021.

Island type patrol boats were built for the US coast guard by the American shipyard Bollinger Shipyards in Lockport (Louisiana) from 1985 to 1992 in the amount of 49 units.

Island-type boats have a full displacement of 165 tonnes and are able to reach speeds of up to 30 knots, with a cruising range exceeding 5,300 km. They are able to operate autonomously for up to five days. The ship can accommodate a crew of 16 people (including two officers).

The boats are equipped with AN / SPS-73 radar and a descent motorboat, the armament consists of a 25-mm tank automatic gun mount Mk 38 Mod 0 Bushmaster and two 12.7 mm M2NV machine guns. Usually, armaments are dismantled on boats transferred abroad, however, the boats were transferred to the Ukrainian side with artillery mounts, but without barrels installed (it is reported that the Ukrainian Navy is going to install 25-mm machine guns from old Soviet 2M-3M gun mounts on these gun mounts).