A warship — the fourth of six being developed for the UAE navy in a Dh4 billion project — was launched yesterday in Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB) unveiled the 72-metre vessel, called Mezyad, which is equipped with propulsion engines and weaponry.
Mezyad is the third ship under the Baynunah Corvette Class Programme to be developed by the company. The vessels are expected to be delivered to the UAE Navy by 2014, with a six-month interval between each delivery.
A warship — the fourth of six being developed for the UAE navy in a Dh4 billion project — was launched yesterday in Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB) unveiled the 72-metre vessel, called Mezyad, which is equipped with propulsion engines and weaponry.
Mezyad is the third ship under the Baynunah Corvette Class Programme to be developed by the company. The vessels are expected to be delivered to the UAE Navy by 2014, with a six-month interval between each delivery.
"Baynunah Class is a unique ship, very sophisticated and very complex that attracts every navy in the world," said Mohammad Salem Al Junaibi, CEO of ADSB.
Foreign interest
"We have been approached by different nations who are waiting for the final delivery of the first class," Al Junaibi said but did not disclose which countries have expressed interest.
The Baynunah Class Corvettes can be deployed for various missions, including coastal patrol and surveillance, helicopter operations and peacetime patrols. The corvettes will also be fitted with anti-ship missiles, air-defence missiles, 3-D surveillance, navigation and fire control radars, and a multivendor electronic warfare suite.
The first of the Baynunah vessels was built at CMN's Cherbourg yard in France under a subcontract with Abu Dhabi Ship Building. The second called Al Hesen and the third, Al Dafra, were launched in 2011.
Abu Dhabi Ship Building is currently going through intensive 16 months of tests and trials for the first three vessels. "You have to test the platform to make sure it meets the customer's expectations … it is a very complex process that we have to go through," Al Junaibi said.
Quay extension
Mezyad is scheduled to go to sea in order to start the preparation process for its acceptance by the UAE Navy.
"We are currently working on a 12 by 26 metre boat for the UAE Navy and on a 34 by 16 metre boat for the Critical National Infrastructure Authority, and also refurbishing and upgrading 12 24-metre boats for the navy," Al Junaibi said.
At the same event, Abu Dhabi Ship Building announced the completion of the extension of the quay wall of its shipbuilding facility by about 155 metres, in addition to the construction of a new pontoon and an electrical substation. The expansion allows Abu Dhabi Ship Building to accommodate more vessels for fit-outs, tests and trials.
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