Helsinki-class missile boat

Dubrovnik (RTOP-42) in the Lora naval base, August 2011
Class overview
Name	Helsinki
Builders	Wärtsilä Helsinki Shipyard
Operators	Finnish Navy  Croatian Navy
Preceded by	Tuima-class missile boat
Succeeded by	Rauma-class missile boat
In service	1981–2007 (Finland) 2008– (Croatia)
Completed	4
Active	2
Scrapped	2
General characteristics
Type	Fast attack craft
Displacement	300 tons
Length	45 m (148 ft)[1]
Beam	8.9 m (29 ft)[1]
Draught	3 m (10 ft)
Installed power	3 × MTU 16V 538 TB92[1] 9,000 kW (combined)
Propulsion	Three shafts
Speed	32 knots (59 km/h; 37 mph)
Complement	30
Sensors and processing systems	Philips 9LV 225 fire control radar Saab EOS400 optical director 9GA 208 Surface search radar[1] Raytheon ARPA Navigation radar Simrad SS304 hull mounted sonar[1] Finnyards Sonac/PTA towed array sonar[1]
Electronic warfare & decoys	Philax chaff and IR flairs ESM: Argo Systems radar warning system 6 × 103 mm rails for rocket illuminants
Armament	1 × Bofors 57 mm/70 Mk1 2 × Sako twin-barreled 23 mm/87 (modified ZU-23-2) 8 × Saab RBS-15 SSM 2 × rails for depth charges

Helsinki-class missile boat (Finnish: Helsinki-luokan ohjusvene) is a class of four fast attack craft built for the Finnish Navy. All the ships were constructed at the Wärtsilä Helsinki Shipyard, Finland, and had Pansio as their homeport.

The vessels were designed as fast attack crafts, but designated "missile boats" in the Finnish Navy, as to tone down their offensive capabilities. They were armed with up to eight RBS-15 SSMs, one dual-purpose Bofors 57 mm gun, two SAKO 23 mm double-barreled anti-aircraft guns and two depth charge racks.

During the late 1990s, the class was due to undergo a mid-life upgrade through 2006–2008 but this was rejected because of budget constraints. The ships were decommissioned from Finnish service, and Helsinki and Turku were used for testing purposes before they were scrapped in 2011.

Two of the vessels were sold to the Croatian Navy for a price of €9 million (65 million kuna)^[2] as a part of an off-set deal for the previous Croatian purchase of 126 Patria AMV vehicles.

The ships arrived in Croatia on 2 November 2008. They underwent a basic refit and repainting, and entered service in January 2009. According to current plans the ships are scheduled to stay active until 2020–2022.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Helsinki class missile boat.

• "Finnish Defence Forces". Retrieved 29 August 2005.

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