ISLAMABAD: The launching ceremony of Pakistan Navy’s Survey Vessel was performed in China, the Navy’s Media Directorate said in a statement on Tuesday.

The 3,000-tonne vessel is under construction at the Jiangsu DAJIN Heavy Industries Company Limited, China, and is the largest survey vessel to be built for Pakistan Navy under Sino-Pak collaboration.

The ship is 80.8 metres in length and is equipped with modern survey equipment. It has the capacity to operate for 50 days at sea, said the statement.

The ship will be commissioned and inducted into the PN Fleet in August 2019 after completion of harbour and sea acceptance trials, the navy said, adding “the new ship will be one of the most technologically advanced survey vessels of Pakistan Navy and will strengthen Pakistan’s marine scientific research capability while providing flexibility to carry out underwater search and localisation operations”.

Chief Naval Overseer (China) Commodore Azfar Humayun, while speaking at the ceremony in China, said the newly launched vessel with its extended endurance and advanced survey equipment would enhance Pakistan’s oceanographic survey capability.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2018