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SLNS Sayurala

The SLN signed the contract for two AOPVs on February 17, 2014 and officially initiated the construction of SLNS Sayurala in May the same year. The Sri Lanka Navy’s first Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel (AOPV), built at the Indian Goa Shipyard Ltd (GSL), was commissioned in a graceful ceremony by the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, His Excellency Maithripala Sirisena 02 August 2017. The President of the Navy Seva Vanitha Unit (NSVU), Mrs. Yamuna Wijegunaratne and a group of senior members of the NSVU were also present on this historic occasion graced by diplomats, dignitaries from various institutions and a host of distinguished guests. Besides, the President of the NSVU together with its members got onboard this brand new state of the art AOPV named SLNS Sayurala and had a general view on the operational capability, technological advances, modern facilities, weaponry and functional aspects of this latest platform of the Navy. To make the event more memorable, they posed for a group photograph onboard ship as well.

SLNS Sayurala turned out to be the first ever brand new platform, purchased from a foreign ship builder, tailored for the specific requirements of the Sri Lanka Navy. Further, it holds the record for the largest vessel built by an Indian shipbuilder for a foreign navy to date. The brand new state of the art AOPV arrived at the port of Colombo on 28th July 2017. She is expected to conduct patrols, policing, reconnaissance, surveillance, search and rescue, Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) and pollution control missions in Sri Lanka's maritime zones. Moreover, it can also be used for external fire-fighting missions.

Built to the standards of Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) and the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), Sayurala features a range of modern facilities and advanced technological instrument. The length and the width of the ship are measured to be 105.7m and 13.6m respectively. The new platform which has a draft (hull) of 5m, is capable of achieving the maximum speed of 26 knots and cruising speed of 12-14 knots. Moreover, it has a displacement of 2,350 tons.

This AOPV which is the first of its kind possessed by the Sri Lanka Navy, will be manned by 18 officers and 100 sailors. Further, Sayurala could bear the endurance of 7,000 nm at a cruising speed of 12 to 14 knots and is provided with a landing facility and hangar for Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH). Apart from that, a Multi-barrel Rocket Launch (MBRL) system would also be installed onboard in a bid to deliver superior combat performance, in due course. Meanwhile the twin sister of this Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel is also expected to join the SLN fleet in the next year.

The Navy had conspicuously envisaged its future role as the sea-going arm is bound to protect the Exclusive Economic Zone of 200 nm and staggering Search and Rescue region of 1,738,062.24 km2 in due course. The acquisition of large scale ships and craft with technologically advanced systems is extremely vital for the Sri Lanka Navy as it is aspiring to become a force that has the capability to venture out to the deep blue seas. The vision of empowering the Navy with 20 ships by 2025 has been clearly defined in the ‘Sri Lanka Navy’s Maritime Strategy 2025’. Accordingly, SLNS Sayurala will be the first of the 20 ships to join the SLN fleet in keeping with that visionary concept of Commander of the Navy.

Among the ships belonging to the Sri Lanka Navy fleet, the Best Ship of the organization is selected every year, after having considered a wide range of activities accomplished by each ship. As such, the selection process takes in to consideration the sporting achievements, naval knowledge and rope handling skills of the crew, the war exercises and voyages made during the period concerned. Having met the stringent selection criteria, SLNS Sayurala was selected as the Best Ship for the year 2018 by the Naval Fleet Command. The plaque engraved a star mark with the year of victory was unveiled onboard the ship by the Flag Officer Commanding Naval Fleet, Rear Admiral Ananda Guruge, 30th January 2019. Commanding Officer of the ship, Captain (CDO) Isira Kasiwatta, officers and sailors of the ship’s crew also attended this special occasion.