The French Navy has received its second Félix Éboué-class ship in Papeete as part of the service’s 2019 overseas patrol vessel (POM) program.
This initiative supports the acquisition of six POMs to replace the service’s P400-class small patrol boats operational since the late 1980s.
It marks the end of the POM sea trial campaign led by the ship’s future crew, the programs and tests commission, and the effort’s primary contractor Socarenam.
The evaluations ran from February to May and involved corresponding deployments from Brest through Papeete.
Following the handover, the navy will conduct further verification before the vessel’s admission to active service.
The POM, named Teriieroo a Teriierooitera (P780), will be homeported in French Polynesia.
French Overseas Patrol Vessel Program
Paris’ POM program seeks to amplify the French Navy’s capabilities in securing interests across the Indo-Pacific region.
Including the P780, the fleet will be distributed in two throughout Papeete for French Polynesia: Nouméa for New Caledonia and Port-des-Galets for Reunion.
The French Ministry of Defense wrote that the POMs will conduct missions for exclusive economic zone security, maritime law enforcement, anti-drug trafficking and anti-illegal immigration, rescue, and fishery and aquatic preservation.
The first Félix Éboué, the Auguste Bénébig (P779), arrived in Nouméa in July 2023.
The Félix Éboué Fleet
France’s Éboué-class POM measures 79.9 meters (262.1 feet) long and integrates deck storage capacity for a 6-meter (20-foot) cargo container and handling crane.
It has a maximum speed of 24 knots (44.4 kilometers/27.6 miles per hour), a range of over 5,500 nautical miles (6,330 miles/10,186 kilometers), and an endurance of up to 30 days.
The vessel can carry 30 operators and up to 30 personnel in its six cabin spaces.
In addition to its towing, anti-pollution, and hydrographic measurement capabilities, the ship is designed with accommodations for an aerial drone similar to the Survey Copter Aliaca’s specifications, two 8-meter (26-foot) fast boats, and one service boat.
The vehicle is armed with Narwhal 20-millimeter remote autocannons, Browning 12.7-millimeter heavy machine guns, and 7.62-millimeter general purpose machine guns.
