KDB Darussalam
KDB Darussalam (OPV-06) is the lead ship of her class of offshore patrol vessels. The vessel is in active service in the Royal Brunei Navy (RBN).
 KDB Darussalam arriving at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii during RIMPAC 2014 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Brunei | |
| Name: |
|
| Namesake: | Darussalam |
| Builder: | Lürssen Werft |
| Acquired: | 4 May 2011 |
| Commissioned: | 7 May 2011 |
| Homeport: | Muara |
| Identification: |
|
| Status: | Active |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Darussalam-class offshore patrol vessel |
| Displacement: | 1,625 tons |
| Length: | 80 m (262 ft 6 in) |
| Beam: | 13 m (42 ft 8 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × MTU 12V diesel engines, 11,400 hp (8,500 kW) |
| Speed: | 22 knots (41 km/h; 25 mph) maximum |
| Range: | 7,500 nmi (13,900 km; 8,600 mi) |
| Endurance: | 21 days |
| Boats & landing craft carried: |
2 x Boomeranger boats 1 x Boomeranger Patrol Craft (1 x 7.62mm gun) |
| Complement: | 55+ |
| Sensors and processing systems: | |
| Electronic warfare & decoys: |
|
| Armament: |
|
| Aircraft carried: | 1 × helicopter |
| Aviation facilities: | Helicopter landing platform |
OPV program
Brunei ordered the Darussalam class from Lürssen, the same company that Brunei contracted to sell the Nakhoda Ragam-class corvettes, and the first two vessels were delivered in January 2011. The second batch of two ships were delivered by 2014.
Construction and career
KDB Darussalam was built by Lürssen Werft company in Germany around the late 2000s. She is part of the first batch delivered from Germany to Brunei. Darussalam and KDB Darulehsan commissioned together on 4 May 2011 at Muara Naval Base. All four of her sister ships work in the offshore patrol vessel role.
RIMPAC 2014
Darussalam and KDB Darulaman fired their missile systems for the first time. They successfully conducted their first Excoet MM40 Block II surface-to-surface missile firing at the Pacific Missile Range Facility, 80 nautical miles (150 km; 92 mi) north of Kaua’i Island.
Both RBN ships participated in Exercise RIMPAC in 2014, hosted by the United States Third Fleet off Hawaii. The ships participated in the SINKEX exercise. Darussalam and Darulaman simultaneously fired their Exocet missiles, which struck the target which was the ex-USS Tuscaloosa.[1]
Exercise Pelican 2015
Singapore and Brunei concluded their flagship bilateral naval exercise on 27 November. Exercise Pelican ran from 23 to 27 November 2015, it was hosted by the Republic of Singapore Navy. The exercise featured RSS Valiant, RSS Stalwart, Darussalam and Darulehsan.[2]
SEAGULL 2016
Darussalam participated in the ASEAN Defence Minister Meeting-Plus Maritime Security and Counter Terrorism Exercise, the SEAGULL 07/16 Exercise was officially inaugurated between the RBN and Philippine Navy. Representing both navies were Darussalam and BRP Gregorio del Pilar, with both ships departing Changi Naval base on 12 May 2016.
The exercise integrated the ADMM-Plus ships to strengthen their capability and inter-operability in effectively addressing terrorism and maritime threats as they are put through realistic sea and land based scenarios. The effort from the ADMM-Plus ships showed their continuous commitment in enhancing regional peace and stability.[3]
PASSEX 2018
On 7 March 2018, the French frigate Vendémiaire made a goodwill visit to Muara Naval Base after sailing from Hong Kong. On 9 March, Vendémiaire conducted a PASSEX with Darussalam, before sailing to the Philippines.[4]
Gallery
- KDB Darussalam Gallery
References
- http://www.mindef.gov.bn/Lists/News/3023_.000?ID=3023. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - Parameswaran, Prashanth. "Singapore, Brunei Conclude Naval Exercise". thediplomat.com. Retrieved 2020-03-26.
- http://www.mindef.gov.bn/Lists/News/3775_.000?ID=3775. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - "Goodwill visit by FNS Vendémiaire". France in Brunei Darussalam. Retrieved 2020-03-26.