Delivered on April 4, 2003, the new vessel is owned and operated by the I-Lan County government of Taiwan. I-Lan County is located beside the Pacific Ocean and has more than 3,000 fishing boats registered in the area. The fishing capacity of the local fleet is the biggest to be found in Taiwan and the surrounding regions. Illegal fishing has been a major problem in the area, and the government will use the new patrol boat to enforce catch laws and prohibit the destruction of fishing grounds.
The authorities requested a patrol boat that was fast with a shallow draught, was low cost, and easily maintained. The tonnage was also limited to less than 20 GT to reduce the required number of crew members. Working within these constraints Lung-Teh has produced a simple but very effective vessel.
