TSAMTO, January 26. The command of the Colombian Navy is taking measures to put into operation the Coast Guard fleet of three new high-speed multi-purpose interceptor boats developed by Safe Boats International.
By information Infodefensa.com, the Bahia 29C type boats were transferred to the Colombian Navy by the Colombian shipbuilding company COTECMAR (Corporacion de Ciencia y Tecnologia para el Desarrollo de la Industria Naval, Maritima y Fluvial) in December 2020: the first on December 15, and two more on December 22.
The boats will be used by the Coast Guard Corps of the Colombian Navy to conduct reconnaissance and surveillance, control maritime traffic, ensure maritime security, protect natural resources, and pursue and detain vessels used for drug trafficking in the Caribbean Sea.
As reported by TSAMTO, in March 2017, the American company Safe Boats International and COTECMAR signed an agreement on the joint production and maintenance of aluminum boats for the Colombian Navy and other customers in the region. The contract, in particular, included the construction of the Defender, Apostle, Full Cabin, and MMI (Multi-Mission Interceptor) boats developed by Safe Boats International.
In September 2020, the Colombian Navy signed contracts with COTECMAR for the supply of three boats of the Bahia 29C type and one boat of the Apostle 41. The construction of the boats was first carried out at an enterprise in Colombia. Previously, the Colombian Navy purchased these boats directly from an American company.
According to available information, the boats with an aluminum hull are equipped with engines such as Yamaha V6 F250 (on the Bahia 29C) and Mercury 350h (on the Apostle 41), infrared front-view cameras such as FLIR M525-CS, Furuno DRS4DL radar.
