New offshore patrol vessel Auguste Techer has arrived in her new home port of Réunion and has been officially commissioned into service with the French Navy.
The Félix Éboué-class OPV is the third of six such vessels planned for La Marine National. Two each will eventually be based in Réunion in the Indian Ocean; in Papeete in French Polynesia in the middle of the Pacific Ocean; and in Nouméa in New Caledonia, which also lies in the Pacific east of Australia.
As per a recent French Navy press statement, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Nicolas Vaujour formally admitted Auguste Techer into active service earlier this month after an initial familiarisation deployment for its crew.
The OPV had set sail from Brittany in July following sea trials after a fitting-out period in builder Socarenam’s Boulogne shipyard.
The 80-metre, 11,300-tonne vessel has a top speed of 24 knots, a crew of 30, and a 5,500-nautical-mile range — roughly twice that of the P400-class vessel she replaces.
As per the French Navy statement: “It is equipped with enhanced surveillance capabilities thanks to the implementation of the Navy’s onboard mini aerial drone system.”
It added: “As part of the capacity renewal of the French overseas forces, the Auguste Techer will strengthen the naval capabilities of the Armed Forces in the southern Indian Ocean.
Its main missions will be the surveillance of French maritime areas, the fight against illicit trafficking, the protection of fisheries, as well as support for maritime rescue operations and humanitarian interventions.”
- You can read more details on the French Navy website