Ukrainian Navy Commissions Two Roland-Class Patrol Boats Supplied By Estonia
The Ukrainian Navy officially commissioned two Roland class (also known as 18 WP class) patrol boats, donated by Estonia to Kiev in coordination with Denmark, in response to the increasing Russian aggression, with a flag-raising ceremony held on May 2. High-ranking military officials from both sides, including the Commander of the Ukrainian Naval Forces, Vice Admiral Oleksiy Neizhpapa, and the Commander of the Estonian Naval Forces, Commodore Jüri Saska, attended the acceptance ceremony of the partially new boats, which will help Ukraine ensure the security of its sea lanes.
In the statement made by the Ukrainian Naval Forces Public Relations Service, it was reported that the boats, which served in the Estonian Navy under the names P01 “Roland” and P02 “Risto” before the handover, were given the names “Irpin” and “Reni” by the order of the Ukrainian Naval Forces Command during the ceremony. The navy stated that the reason for choosing these names was to honor the heroic city of Irpin, near the capital Kiev, and the city of Reni, Ukraine’s closest port to the Republic of Estonia.
The “Irpin” and “Reni” boats, which will perform combat missions in the service of the Ukrainian Navy, including the protection of civilian shipping, were built by the Estonian Baltic Workboats (BWB). These patrol boats, launched in 2020 and accepted into the Estonian Navy in 2021, were delivered to Ukraine last week as part of the Tallinn government’s latest military aid package to Kiev.
The Roland class patrol boats were based on one of the main BWB models and feature a patented wave-piercing design. These boats are both agile and robust, measuring 17.25 meters in length and 5.42 meters in width, and feature light ballistic armor protection and an aluminum hull design. These boats are typically operated by a crew of four to six personnel and powered by two Volvo D13 1000 engines, each with a power output of 735 kW. This allows it to reach a maximum speed of 33 knots and a range of 230 nautical miles. These patrol boats are equipped with a 12.7mm remotely controlled stabilized heavy machine gun on the bow deck and two 7.62mm light machine guns on the stern for self-defense. The boats can also be equipped with depth charges to combat enemy submarines.
“Irpin” and “Reni” join the two former UK Royal Navy Sandown Class mine countermeasure vessels which were commissioned as Chernihiv and Cherkasy in December 2023.