Hamilton Jet’s newly developed HJX29 waterjet will power a fleet of border control vessels for the Turkish Coastguard
Antalya’s ARES Shipyard will build 122 patrol boats to protect Turkish waters following an award from the Presidency of Defence Industries for the Turkish Coastguard.
The project will see each of the 12-m fibreglass reinforced plastic and carbon composite boats equipped with Hamilton Jet’s twin HJX29 waterjets controlled by the company’s Blue Arrow electronic waterjet control system.
The HJX29 waterjet has a maximum power of 440 kW, 4% higher med-high-speed thrust, and 10% greater bollard pull than previous models which the company said will allow for superior control. The reverse duct and optimised JT steering system offers precise 360° manoeuvrability at low speeds.
The project is projected to last five years and is the largest volume serial production in Turkey’s shipbuilding history. ARES Shipyard chief executive Utku Alanc said “We will deliver six boats every two months based on our production programme. Thus, one boat will be made ready to launch in only one week.”
Hamilton Jet has previously worked with the Turkish Coastguard to supply HM571 waterjets for a series of 19-m search and rescue vessels built by Damen. The company’s area sales manager for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Tim Lewis said past experience has helped Hamilton Jet become the preferred supplier of waterjets and controls to the Turkish Coastguard.
Hamilton Jet’s Istanbul-based distributor Nemomarin will run the project with ARES Shipyard and the build starts later this year. The first HJX29 waterjets and Blue Arrow controls are expected to arrive in Turkey from mid-October.
Mr Lewis said “They will be used to prove the design under sea trials towards the end of the year. From there, we will send 12 waterjets every two or three months through until the start of 2024.”
"Our challenge has been to get the waterjets built, installed and commissioned on schedule under the global disruption created by Covid-19, and we are pleased to say we are on track.”
Sign up to attend our upcoming series of operational and technical webinars on our events page. All the previous webinars can be viewed in full, in our webinar library.
© 2023 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd.