Introduction to the first self-righting SAR boat in Taiwan
"RB-01" is the first large size self-righting Search and Rescue SAR boat built in Taiwan, and it is also the first dedicated SAR boat owned by the Coast Guard Department in Taiwan. The main duties of the self-righting SAR boat are fast response to rescue scene, long time search and rescue mission, and assisted fire-fighting works. The operation area will cover the whole coastline and nearby islands around Taiwan.
"RB-01" was designed and built by Lung-Teh shipbuilding Co., Ltd. in Taiwan. By considering the rescue mission in the heavy sea conditions around Taiwan coast area, the hull construction and stability are specially considered. The design criterion of hull construction is to withstand the slamming load of "7g" at the longitudinal center of gravity. It ensures the hull to be strong enough to operate in full speed even in the wave of 5 meters significant weight height. The tough hull construction is achieved by using the advanced composite material. The hull is made by Kevlar fiber in single skin and the superstructure is made by carbon fiber in sandwich construction. The stability criteria are designed as (1) the boat is capable of self-righting even when one of the superstructure compartments is damaged and (2) the boat is still afloat even when all compartments are damaged.
To perform the shallow water rescue mission, "RB-01" is equipped with one RIB in the aft. The RIB is with the length of 3.2 Meters, and waterjet propulsion system with 63HP engine. The maximum speed is 40 knots and it can carry four people. With the quick launching and recovering system, the RIB can be launched and recovered immediately during seaway if necessary. "RB-01" is also capable of carrying out some fire-fighting work. It is performed by the fire pump driven by starboard main engine with the capacity of 60M3/Hr x 90M. One fire monitor installed at upper deck can be remotely controlled.
The design work of "RB-01" was started from October 24th 2001, and the hull construction work was started form March 1st 2002. After six months of intensive construction works, the boat was launched on September 10th The roll over test was carried out on September 18th and the test result shows its fully compliance to computer simulation During the roll over test, the main engine was running continuously and the roll over time from upside down to upright only 4.6 seconds. The official sea trial was carried out on October 4th, and the test result showed its good maneuverability, fast speed (max. 27.5 knots) and low noise. After the successful sea trial, "RB-01" was delivered to Coast Guard Department on October 24th 2002, and the other two vessels, RB-02 &RB-03. are scheduled to deliver lo the same owner in November and December of 2002.
