The ''Guaiquerí''-class patrol vessels (Avante 2200 Patrol) are a class of ocean

patrol vessel A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and they ...

s or POVZEE (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Patrullero Oceánico de Vigilancia de la Zona Económica Exclusiva'') in

Venezuelan Navy The Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela (), commonly known as the Venezuelan Navy, is the navy, naval branch of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces of Venezuela. The Venezuelan Navy serves the purpose of defending the naval sovereignty of Venezuela, i ...

service. The lead ship were originally intended to have the pennant F-31 and name of ''Guaicaipuro'' but has since been renumbered.

Design

The POVZEE vessels feature

stealth technology Stealth technology, also termed low observable technology (LO technology), is a sub-discipline of military tactics and passive and active electronic countermeasures. The term covers a range of military technology, methods used to make personnel ...

with reduced radar and infrared signatures as well as special design to minimize the propulsion system's noise emissions and vibrations. An aft

hangar A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...

and

flight deck The flight deck of an aircraft carrier is the surface on which its aircraft take off and land, essentially a miniature airfield at sea. On smaller naval ships which do not have aviation as a primary mission, the landing area for helicopters ...

enables operation of a single rotary-wing aircraft. The ship carries two small semi-rigid boats

RHIB A rigid inflatable boat (RIB), also rigid-hull inflatable boat or rigid-hulled inflatable boat (RHIB), is a lightweight but high-performance and high-capacity boat constructed with a rigid hull bottom joined to side-forming air tubes that are i ...

for rescue and transport purposes. The first ship, ''Guaiquerí'' was launched by Spanish state-owned shipbuilder,

Navantia Navantia is a Spanish state-owned shipbuilding enterprise dedicated to civil and military naval construction, the design of deep-tech systems and the manufacture of structures for the renewable energy sector, such as offshore wind or hydrogen. ...

, at their Cadiz shipyard on 24 June 2009. On 3 August 2012, ''Warao'' grounded on a reef off

Fortaleza Fortaleza ( ; ; ) is the state capital of Ceará, located in Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeastern Brazil. It is Brazil's 4th largest city—Fortaleza surpassed Salvador, Bahia, Salvador in 2022 census with a population of slightly over 2.4 mi ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

when arriving for the joint exercise "VenBras-2012" with the

Brazilian Navy The Brazilian Navy () is the navy, naval service branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces, responsible for conducting naval warfare, naval operations. The navy was involved in War of Independence of Brazil#Naval action, Brazil's war of independence ...

. She was assisted by sister ''Kariña'' and refloated by Brazilian

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, suc ...

s. The

hull Hull may refer to: Structures * The hull of an armored fighting vehicle, housing the chassis * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a sea-going craft * Submarine hull Ma ...

and propulsion system were heavily damaged and it was decided to repair her in Brazil with assistance from Navantia. In March 2013 she arrived at the naval dockyard at

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

aboard Dutch heavy-lift dock ''Rolldock Sea''. On 31 March 2016, the accidental discharge of a cannon on ''Guaiquerí'' left at least one dead and six injured.

Ships of class

References

External links

Deagel POVZEE

POVZEE Offshore Patrol Vessel

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guaiquerí-class patrol boat Ships of the Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela Patrol ship classes