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Patrol boats sent back to manufacturer
By Menelaos Hadjicostis
FOUR patrol boats intended for police and military use have been sent back to their Italian manufacturer for a performance improvement after failing to reach the required standards short in speed trials a year their delivery.
The Θ10m boats are back at the Cantiere Navale Vittoria Spa dry docks for a refit after experts found their top speed of 39.5 knots was 3.5 knots less than what was specified in the contract.
The discovery was made in May when Auditor General Chrystalla Georgadji commissioned a Greek naval expert to put one patrol boat through its paces and see if it was up to the job.
But the boat proved a woeful disappointment, prompting authorities to send them all back.
The speed test was conducted on only one boat, but its low speed is considered to apply to all four as they are identical.
Daily paper Politis uncovered the debacle which police, in a statement, later confirmed.

Crucial
Politis reported that, according to the contract, the boats should have achieved a speed of no less than 43 knots. Anything less than 41 knots would be a negate the deal.
High speed is crucial for patrol boats because of the nature of their tasks. Two boats would have been assigned to coastal patrol duty, primarily to search for illegal migrants trying to make their way to Cypriot shores.
Illegal migration is an important matter for Brussels and Nicosia has been under pressure to act as Cyprus is seen as a vulnerable backdoor to the EU.
Moreover, the boats’ army duty requires high speeds so that the craft can evade hostile fire and either outrun or intercept other hostile vessels.
In the statement, police said the boats passed all requisite speed performance tests prior to the delivery.
But Georgadji’s hunch for a post-delivery check proved correct as the boats did not live up to expectations.
“As a result, following instructions from the Auditor General, police demanded that the manufacturer repair the flaw,” the police statement said.
Moreover, ‘interceptor flaps’ were installed on all four boats to boost performance.
But Politis reported the test boat failed to reach 43 knots with and without the flaps.
The statement said that if the boats fail to pass muster despite the refit, police can claim the Italian company’s Θ1m performance guarantee that expires on September 30, 2005.

Compensation
It is understood Cypriot authorities could also seek compensation for breach of contract.
“Police followed and completed all procedures foreseen under current law for the purchase of the craft and the matter is now in the hands of the Auditor General’s office,” said the statement.
Politis reported the botch-up caught the attention of President Tassos Papadopoulos who is following developments closely.