Argentina on Saturday took delivery of two Shaldag MK II fast patrol boats from Israel Shipyards. The Shaldag MK II fast patrol boats will be used by the Prefectura Naval Argentina (Argentina Coast Guard) in the fight against drug trafficking in the Paraná and Uruguay rivers. The boats are the last of four such vessels purchased under a high-profile $49 million deal signed late 2016. The first two boats were delivered earlier this year. The Shaldag MK II fast patrol boats will be used by the Prefectura Naval Argentina (Argentina Coast Guard) in the fight against drug trafficking in the Paraná and Uruguay rivers. The boats are equipped with 20mm and 25mm gun systems.
The Shaldag class Fast Patrol Boat is a small but fast class of patrol boats developed for the Israeli Sea Corps (ISC) and launched in 1989. The SHALDAG-Class fast patrol boats (FPBs) are built by Israel Shipyards Limited (ISL) for security tasks where high intercept speeds are required, such as interdiction of terrorism and illegal smuggling. The Fast Patrol Boat is also in service with the Israeli Navy (Israeli Sea Corps), Azerbaijani Navy, Sri Lanka Navy, Nigerian Navy, Cyprus Port and Marine Police, and the Equatorial Guinea Navy. The fast patrol boat features a deep-V hull and superstructure made of welded marine aluminium alloy. Its design offers low resistance and superior seakeeping characteristics, including very low slamming in rough seas.
