VESSEL REVIEW | Italian financial police acquires interceptor RIB

Italy's Guardia di Finanza (GdF) financial police force has taken delivery of a new interceptor boat from Zodiac Milpro.

The rigid inflatable boat (RIB) has a length of 13.1 metres, a beam of 3.72 metres, and space for four crewmembers and nine other personnel. Four Yamaha 316kW outboard engines fed by a 1,910-litre tank deliver a maximum speed of 69 knots and a range of 400 nautical miles.

The RIB is designed on a patented stepped aluminium hull that offers advantages such as reduced fuel consumption, reduced pitching motion, lower power requirements, and the ability to more easily stay on plane even at speeds of between 17 and 20 knots.

The craft features dual consoles, reconfigurable deck spaces fore and aft, dive access doors, and advanced propulsion control/vessel positioning systems. The dual consoles are fitted with a removable roof as well as a foldable mast and windscreen to reduce transportation height. Mounted on the roof is a Simrad radar.

The foam collar comes with an auto inflation feature and is also easily removable for maintenance. Suspension seats from Shoxs are available for the crew.

The new RIB is being operated in the Mediterranean out of the GdF's station at Lampedusa in the Pelagie Islands off Sicily. Missions will include surveillance, boarding, interdiction, and pursuit. Zodiac Milpro said the design is also particularly adapted to enable operations even under difficult sea conditions.

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