Incat and Revolution awarded US Military contract

by Powerboat-World.com on 2 Feb 2008 Two Tasmanian based companies Incat Tasmania Pty Ltd and Revolution Design Pty Ltd have announces they have been awarded a US multi-million dollar design contract by the US Department of Defense.

The companies are part of an international consortium responding to the United States Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition program for the Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV). The JHSV program brings together United States Navy, Army, Marines, and SOCOM to pursue a multi-use platform.

Incat Chairman Robert Clifford explained that the consortium is led by Incat’s United States partner, Louisiana-based Bollinger Shipyards, Inc., and includes Australia’s Incat and Revolution Design,

The Australian Incat-built High Speed Vessels, HSV-X1 Joint Venture, TSV-1X Spearhead and HSV-2 Swift, have already been employed by the DoD for experimentation and demonstration of high speed vessel technologies as well as for logistics support.

These craft have been used to support operations in the Global War on Terrorism and during Operation Iraqi Freedom. They have been deployed to the Horn of Africa, Persian Gulf and Southeast Asia. Additionally, HSV-2 Swift supported relief operations in Indonesia and in the Gulf Coast region following hurricane Katrina.

In both cases, Swift's high speed and shallow draught combined to make it an ideal platform for the delivery of relief supplies and support of other platforms operating in the area.

During operations following Katrina, Swift was able to access ports inaccessible to other ships in the logistics force, and therefore played a critical role in the early delivery of supplies.

The Australian Navy has also experienced the benefits of Tasmanian-designed vessels, operating the Incat 86 metre Wave Piercing Catamaran HMAS Jervis Bay during the East Timor crisis.

The JHSV is a new generation, multi-use platform capable of transporting troops and their equipment, supporting humanitarian relief efforts, the ability to operate in shallow waters and can reach speed in access of 35 knots fully loaded.

The Incat 112 metre, which forms the base of the consortium’s submission, is the largest catamaran ever built in Australia. Already proven in commercial service as a ferry in Japan it provides unparalled seakeeping and comfort even on rough open sea routes. Power is supplied by four diesel engines, each rated 9000 kW at 1000 rpm.