KOTA KINABALU, 25 Jan – The Royal Malaysian Navy would soon be bolstered with the acquisition of 13 Fast Interceptor Craft (FIC) G2000 MK II.
The locally assembled combat vessels, believed to be procured from Gading Marine Industry Sdn Bhd for RM120 million, are expected to be based at the RMN’s Eastern Fleet Command Headquarters in Sabah.
A defence ministry official said that four such vessels had already been delivered, with the remaining in batches over several months.
“Given the 52 knots (96 km per hour) high speed of the vessels, they will be ideally deployed to patrol the waters off the vast Sabah coastline, especially to assist the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) in various missions like Ops Benteng to thwart the entry of illegal immigrants,” said the official.
The 26-tonne and 18-meter FIC G2000 MK II is reportedly equipped with a 12.7mm Remote Controlled Weapon System (RCWS) and two 7.62mm machine guns, enhancing its capabilities as compared to its predecessor the FIC MK I.
The FIC G20000 MK II that is equipped with two MAN V12 1,650 horse-power engines and two Hamilton HTX42 water jets, which can accommodate up to eight Quick Reaction Force crewmen, also has a radius of 350 nautical miles (650km).
It is designed for various missions, including coastal surveillance patrol, interception, clandestine missions, search and rescue operations, and rapid response.
The FIC G2000 MK II will also feature an Electronic Control System (ECS), multi-function radars, global positioning system (GPS) and a Machinery Control System.
The FIC G2000 MK II are expected to complement the six older FIC MK I that were procured in 2020 for RM80 million, and deployed at various RMN bases nationwide.
Apart from the RMN, the Royal Malaysian Police operates several FAC PC 31 that were bought in 2019. – airtimes.my
