Portugal’s National Defence Ministry has contracted Damen Shipyards for the design and construction of a so-called Multi-functional Naval Platform.
The €132 million multi-purpose vessel is majorly funded by the European Union’s Recovery and Resilience Facility that is part of NextGenerationEU, the economic recovery package to support EU member states affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The state-of-the-art multifunctional vessel, termed a ‘drone aircraft carrier’, will be produced at the shipyard in Galați, Romania.
The vessel will be equipped with laboratories and accommodation spaces, a flight deck of 94m x 11ms and hangars for UAVs, a cargo deck of 650 square meters, and space for 12 containers.
The Dutch defense, shipbuilding, and engineering conglomerate can technically only build this type of ship at the Galați shipyard.
The 107m-long multifunctional ship is based on the specific requirements of the Portuguese navy, with primary mission roles that include oceanographic research, search, and rescue, as well as emergency aid, in addition to maritime security operations and naval support.
The ship will be equipped with a system to launch unmanned drones and helicopters, and have laboratories and accommodation spaces for scientific personnel for oceanographic research and monitoring activities.
Regarding naval support, the vessel will have a ramp for UUVs (unmanned underwater vehicles) and USVs (unmanned surface vehicles), as well as a flight deck and hangars for UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles).
The new ship will be certified by the Portuguese navy as a Multifunctional Naval Platform (PNM) and Damen has worked closely with the Portuguese navy to incorporate versatility in the design.
