RV Triton (Trimaran Warship Demonstrator) (2000-2005) (Ex RN/QinetiQ)

[SKB]

^ Triton

Introduction
The Research Vessel Triton is a trimaran vessel owned by Gardline Marine Sciences Limited since 2005 and was a former prototype British warship demonstrator built for the UK's Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (later QinetiQ). She was built as a technology demonstrator ship for the Royal Navy's Future Surface Combatant, and has been used to both prove the viability of the hull-form and as a trials platform for other QinetiQ innovations. Since 2007 the ship has been used by the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service's Customs Marine Unit.


Construction
In August 1998, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) awarded a contract to Vosper Thornycroft to construct the trimaran, at a cost of £13.5m. RV Triton was launched from VT Portsmouth (later BAE Portsmouth) in May 2000 and delivered in August 2000. Triton then began a two-year risk reduction trials programme for the UK MoD and the US Department of Defense.


Name
The vessel's three parallel hulls are reflected in her name which refers to the maritime god Triton who carried the three-pronged spear, the trident. The outriggers are thinner and much shorter than the dominant central hull.


Operational History
DERA/QinetiQ
Triton was designed as a demonstrator to prove that the trimaran concept would work successfully in a large warship. Following her launch in 2000, the ship began an extensive series of trials in 2001, which covered general ship handling, performance, sea-keeping behaviour, but also areas more specific to its design for which the Royal Navy had no experience. For example, a series of docking manoeuvres were undertaken by the pilot boats of HMNB Portsmouth to determine the problems of docking a large trimaran, and the ship underwent underway replenishment alongside HMS Argyll and the tanker RFA Brambleleaf to ascertain the characteristics of a trimaran and a monohull replenishing at the same time. Triton also undertook the first helicopter take off and landing on a trimaran. Triton was present at the International Festival of the Sea in 2001, but visitors were not permitted on board.

Gardline Marine Sciences (2005-Present)
In January 2005, Triton was sold to Gardline Marine Sciences, a UK company based in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk. Triton was used for hydrographic survey work for the civil hydrography programme (CHP) on behalf of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). The vessel was fitted with a sensor suite which includes the Kongsberg Simrad EM1002 multibeam echo-sounder, a GPS attitude / heading system, surface navigation and ultra-short baseline sub-surface acoustic tracking system, Gardline Voyager5 integrated survey system and Caris post-processing system. The vessel was enhanced by Gardline by installing a bowthrust unit, additional accommodation and survey equipment facilities. In 2009, two new MTU engines were fitted; MTU 16v 4000 M40B. Output 2,080kW each.

Australian Customs (2006-Present)
In December 2006, Gardline contracted Triton to the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service to patrol Australia's northern waters as one of the service's fleet of patrol vessels. Australian Customs Vessel Triton has been fitted with two .50 calibre heavy machine guns and carries up to 28 armed customs officers. The vessel is also equipped with two 7.3m high-speed rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs). The ship arrived from the UK in mid-January 2007 and started operations immediately. Austere accommodation is provided for 100 embarked persons in addition to conventional accommodation for 45.


Original Name: RV Triton
Current Name: ACV Triton (Australian service)
Namesake: Triton (Maritime God)
Ordered: August 1998
Builder: VT Group
Cost: Approximately £20m (inc £13.5m from VT)
Acquired: August 2000
Fate: Sold to Gardline Marine Sciences, 2005. Leased to Australian Customs and Border Protection Service, December 2006
Tonnage: 2,236 gt
Length: 318 ft 3 in (97.00 m)
Beam: 73 ft 8 in (22.45 m)
Draught: 10 ft (3.0 m)
Propulsion: Diesel electric propulsion, Single shaft
Speed: 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Range: 3,000 nautical miles (5,600 km; 3,500 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement: 14 crew and up to 28 Customs Officers (Australian service)
Armament: 2 x .50 calibre heavy machine guns (Australian service)

[SKB]

^ Triton under construction at VT Portsmouth in 1999. (later BAE Portsmouth)






^ ACV Triton in Australian service, 2007.

[Engaging Strategy]

Do we know much about the results of her trials?

[shark bait]

Seems positive. Proved to be stable and structurally sound in sea state 7


CONCLUSIONS
The Trimaran Demonstrator Program was developed to minimize the risk of the trimaran hull form for warship application. This program has met this objective by the successful operation of the ship in design conditions. The current analysis of measured strains shows moderate structural response relative to yield. However, not all of the analysis is complete, so we cannot fully categorize the performance of the RV Triton to current U.S.
warship design

The outrigger connecting gages, in the cross deck structure between the outriggers and the center hull, show the maximum strains experienced by the RV Triton to be 635 uStrain amplitude with a 484 uStrain slamming and vibration component in head seas. This maximum strain is theorized to be a result of wave impact due to either wake effect from the center hull, direct sea wave impact, or a combination of both, during a head seas run, in combination with buoyant forces acting on the individual outriggers.

The trimaran demonstrator program was a successful MOU. In a short period of time, two governments and industry came together designed, built, and tested a novel hull form. The RV Triton has demonstrated that a large trimaran is a viable ship configuration with application toward a true warship. All of the analysis is not yet complete, but the results will be used to further develop design guides and rules for future trimaran ships.

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&sourc ... M9zYXyas7g

[SKB]

[RetroSicotte]

£8m for a quick patrol vessel in the fleet or Border Force that we already know and understand now that the UK needs more?

Nab it back.

[Timmymagic]

Nab it back.

Already proved in that role by the Australians as well..
It's a pity we didn't buy all of the ex-Finland Border Force vessels as well. Always take advantage of someone else's mistake...

[Dahedd]

I remember seeing her coming in & out of Aberdeen harbour on many occasion. Lot of potential that didn't seem to go anywhere other than one of the LCS designs.

[Halidon]

Make it the new Royal Yacht.