Navy ship Sayurala leaves for ASEAN International Fleet Review – 2017 in Thailand

The Navy’s largest Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel (AOPV), SLNS Sayurala, left the country on Thursday to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) International Fleet Review – 2017 in Thailand.

The ship left with a crew of 127 naval personnel from Trincomalee. This will be SLNS Sayurala’s first foreign sea voyage after the vessel joined the Navy’s fleet in August this year.

The ASEAN International Fleet Review is scheduled to be held in Pattaya, Thailand from 18 to 21 November. It is being held to coincide with the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Twenty six naval ships representing 19 Southeast Asian countries are expected to take part in the Fleet Review and related exercises.

SLNS Sayurala, built at the Goa Shipyard Ltd. (GSL) in India, was commissioned by President Maithripala Sirisena on 2 August. The ship is built in keeping with the Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) and the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) standards. The 105.7m long ship is 13.6m wide and is capable of achieving a maximum speed of 26 knots and cruising speed of 12-14 knots.