Kuwait Coast Guard Takes Delivery of 5 x 470TD Hovercraft and places order for new Griffon 8100TD

The Kuwait Coast has just taken delivery of five 470TD (8m) hovercraft, and has just placed an order for one 8100TD (22.5m) hovercraft.

The Kuwait Coast Guard (“KCG”) will operate their hovercraft in the un-marked shallow creeks and riverine areas around Sabiyah and Bubiyan islands. The hovercraft will be used for customs and policing duties, as well as for search and rescue, maritime pollution limitation and logistics support.

The 470TD has a normal payload of 470kgs and is designed to carry 5 personnel at speed of 30 knots. To enable the crew to operate at night, search lights and night vision equipment is fitted. The KCG will potentially be operating their craft in hostile conditions, so for the safety of the crew, the craft have been fitted with the lastest light weight armour protection, offering protection against 7.62mm NATO ball, NIJ level III. The craft are provided with purpose built hover-on hover-off road trailers, enabling the Coast Guard to easily transport and deploy the hovercraft very quickly.

The 8100TD will have a multi-purpose role, and be able to carry a combination of 36 troops, a 4×4 vehicle, logistics equipment and accommodation for the crew. The craft will be fitted with a 0.5 calibre machine gun, armour protection, night vision equipment and a crane and a special well-deck (complete with bow ramp) to carry a vehicle. Double air conditioning is provided to cope with temperatures sometimes exceeding 50° C, and each craft is powered by two Iveco Vector 20 C8 water-cooled diesel engines and two controllable pitch propellers.

To support the KCG’s operations, Griffon Hoverwork provided a complete training package for the piloting, maintenance and tactical operations to ensure that the hovercraft are used to their maximum potential.

This order from the KCG follows a similar order for 470TD hovercraft for the Moroccan Gendarmerie Royale. Whereas the basic hull and machinery of both craft are exactly the same, the superstructure and fit-out are entirely different. GHL always provides the customer with his preferred craft configuration in order to fit his own specific operational requirements.

Griffon Hovercraft Ltd leads the world in the design, manufacture and operation of amphibious hovercraft.

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