In a further milestone for the Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) program, the two halves of the first of class ship, Arafura, built by Luerssen Australia and its partner ASC have been brought together and welded to form a complete hull. In what was the largest block move in the history of the Osborne Naval Shipyard and a considerable engineering feat, Australian Naval Infrastructureís (ANI) operations team manoeuvred the two mega-blocks together, with only millimetres between them.
On Wednesday 29 April, the front half of the ship was rolled out of its construction shed atop a 192-wheeled low-load transporter and wheeled into position to be married to its stern half.
