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U-300 Uisko LCP Watercat M11

The predecessor of Watercat M12, Uisko-class transport boat, is the origin for Marine Alutech Oy Ab:s story as a builder of military vessels. It was also the launch for Finnish water jet production. The power source of the transport boat is a 490 kW marine diesel combined with a water jet. They give the boat a speed of 35 knots weighting about seven tons. Excellent maneuverability and low draught give the boat benefit when approaching unknown and hostile shores. Watercat M11 is a boat with features that have been tested in hard trials and in demanding conditions.

The development of Uisko-class boats began in the 1950s. The fleet was well suited to Finnish conditions and allowed the transportation of personnel and equipment. Photo: Military Museum Coastal Infantry after the Wars Despite the significant contribution of the Coastal Infantry during the various stages of the Continuation War, the education branch's position immediately after the war remained marginal. In 1952, the composition of the Coastal Battalion was approved as an experimental one. The Battalion belonged to the Coast Artillery Regiment I. The battalion's main location was Miessaari in the Espoo archipelago and parts of the battalion were located in Suomenlinna.

The battalion's operations were developed to enable them to carry out landings by temporary means of transport. The Coast Battalion militias had to be given coastal troop training so complete, that trained troops are capable of performing special combat tasks in all conditions in coastal and archipelago conditions. The good results of the Coast Battalion's training provided the basis for the establishment of an independent Coastal Battalion. The Battalion was transferred from Miessaare to the Porkkala garrison The officers of the Coastal Infantry Battalion were basically similar to the conscripts, but in training they were harder than in many other places.

In Finland, guerrilla operations and guerrilla warfare methods are part of the art of warfare. The experience of recent wars also highlighted the need for combatants specializing in island and coastal conditions. The idea of archipelago guerrilla activity was by no means new, as the delay and guerrilla activity in the archipelago had been for example in the training of the Coastal Infantry Battalion and in tactics already in the mid-1950s and early 1960s. The activity of the coastal icebreakers requires the ability to move company entities quickly within the archipelago to the landfall area. Photo: SA image The transition to a regional defense system was evident in the Coastal Infantry Battalion as a clear addition to guerrilla training. The guards of the Border Guard had also tried and studied guerrilla activities in the archipelago.

The involvement of the Border Guard in the development of guerrilla tactics was particularly important, as it also saw the potential of the Coast Guard to join guerrilla activities. Indeed, at the end of 1965, a permanent order was issued at the Border Guard Department for the training and training of archipelagic guards, the purpose of which was to familiarize the coastguard personnel with inland, reconnaissance and surveillance tasks in enemy-occupied island and coastal areas.

The good experience of the guerrilla commissioners who worked over the years and the need to further investigate guerrilla activities in the archipelago and coastal areas led to the establishment in summer 1968 of a special working group, called the Archipelago Guerrilla, at the behest of the General Staff. The guerrilla training battalions trained for superiors were not meant for local troops or guerrilla activities in the archipelago and along the coasts, but for second-class troops to deploy. The task force set up was tasked with studying and exploring the potential for guerrilla activities in the archipelago as part of the regional battle, organization, areas of operation, troops and their composition, command and equipment, and necessary preparation and training issues. The Working Group on Archipelago Activities completed its work in May 1969 and, in its final report, justified the use of guerrilla activities from the perspective of Finnish warfare and the prevailing war picture. The main objectives of the invasion were to obtain enemy information, that is to say intelligence and arousal of the guerrilla, and to disrupt all enemy activity, to commit enemy forces and to make losses.

Uisko class boats have been used since the 1950s. The boats have been able to transfer about half of the teams at a time and a variety of material. The boats are armed according to the available weaponry.