Irish Navy floats out LÉ William Butler Yeats

Appledore Shipbuilders, a subsidiary of Babcock Marine, on March 10 floated out the third and last patrol vessel it is building for the Irish Navy.

The video above shows LÉ William Butler Yeats come out of the factory for the first time.

The Irish Navy has contracted Babcock in 2010 to deliver three Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV) for the Irish Naval Service with the work being carried out at Babcock’s Appledore facility in Devon.

LÉ Samuel Beckett, the first ship of the class, has already performed its first active patrols and has attracted international attention with rescue missions in the Mediterranean Sea off the Libyan coast.

The vessels are commissioned to undertake a range of duties including fishery protection, search and rescue, anti-pollution and maritime security duties.

The 90 metre, 2256 tonne OPVs have autonomous engine rooms and are capable of a top speed of 23 knots and a range of 6,000 nautical miles at its cruise speed of 15 knots on a single engine.

The vessels propulsion system utilises a diesel electric drive system providing a loiter function of up to 6 knots. A comprehensive command, control and communications package is coupled to the main weapon; a 76mm gun, as well as two 20mm cannons and four general purpose machine guns. The vessels are also equipped with configurable, serviced mission modules, with deck space to operate mission specific equipment, and to act as a mother ship for two Rigid Hulled Inflatable Boats (RIBs).

LÉ James Joyce, the second OPV, joined the Irish Navy on September 1, 2015.

Video, image: Irish Navy