About Arafura-class OPV Program

The first Arafura Class Offshore Patrol Vessel to be built in Australia was launched in an official ceremony at Osborne Naval Shipyard in South Australia on 16 December 2021. (Commonwealth of Australia)

Australia is procuring 12 Arafura class Offshore Patrol Vessels through Project SEA1180 Phase 1 to replace its fleet of Armidale class patrol boats with larger, more capable, vessels. In 2017 Luerssen Australia was selected as prime contractor for the project with the first two ships to be built in Adelaide, South Australia, and the remaining 10 to be built in Perth, Western Australia.

While the first vessel was originally planned to enter service in 2022, the program has encountered delays. The first ship was only launched in December 2021 and commissioning of NUSHIP Arafura is now not scheduled until 2024. Notably, NUSHIP Arafura was launched without a main gun after Defence cancelled a contract with Leonardo Australia to provide a bespoke 40mm main gun for the class, citing “technical certification concerns”. In the interim, Defence plans to field 25mm Bushmaster cannons taken from decommissioned Arimdale class vessels.

As of October 2023, nearly two years after launch NUSHIP Arafura not yet commenced sea trials and it remains unclear when it will do so, with some elements in Defence seeing it as ill-equipped for the circumstances facing Australia. In an effort to address these concerns, Naval News understands, the RAN is examining options for up-arming the vessels.

In May 2020, before NUSHIP Arafura was launched, the Australian Government announced that it had awarded Austal a contract for six Evolved Cape Class Patrol Boats in a bid to “reduce the risk” of the transition from Armidale to Arafura. In 2022 an additional two Evolved Cape Class boats were ordered, bringing the total to eight.

Source – Naval News