Patrol Boat, River

Patrol Boat, River or PBR, is the United States Navy designation for a small rigid-hulled patrol boat used in the Vietnam War from March 1966 until the end of 1971. They were deployed in a force that grew to 250 boats, the most common craft in the River Patrol Force, Task Force 116, and were used to stop and search river traffic in areas such as the Mekong Delta, the Rung Sat Special Zone, the Saigon River and in I Corps, in the area assigned to Task Force Clearwater, in an attempt to disrupt weapons shipments. In this role they frequently became involved in firefights with enemy soldiers on boats and on the shore, were used to insert and extract Navy SEAL teams, and were employed by the United States Army's 458th Transportation Company, known as the 458th Seatigers.

Design

The PBR was a versatile boat with a fiberglass hull and water jet drive which enabled it to operate in shallow, weed-choked rivers. It drew only two feet of water fully loaded. The drives could be pivoted to reverse direction, turn the boat in its own length, or come to a stop from full speed in a few boat lengths.

Patrol boat

A patrol boat is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defense duties. There have been many designs for patrol boats. They may be operated by a nation's navy, coast guard, or police force, and may be intended for marine (blue water) and/or estuarine or river ("brown water") environments. They are commonly found engaged in various border protection roles, including anti-smuggling, anti-piracy, fisheries patrols, and immigration law enforcement. They are also often called upon to participate in rescue operations. Vessels of this type include the original yacht (from Dutch/Low German jacht meaning hunting or hunt), a light, fast-sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into shallow waters.

Classification

They may be broadly classified as inshore patrol vessels (IPVs) and offshore patrol vessels (OPVs). They are warships typically smaller in size than a corvette and can include fast attack craft, torpedo boats and missile boats, although some are as large as a frigate. The offshore patrol vessels are usually the smallest ship in a navy's fleet that are large and seaworthy enough to patrol off-shore in the open ocean. In larger militaries, such as in the United States military, offshore patrol vessels usually serve in the coast guard, but many smaller nations navies operate these type of ships.

Patrol Boat (TV series)

Patrol Boat is an Australian television drama series that screened on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Patrol Boat was created by James Davern and two series were produced, in 1979 and 1983, with a total of 26 episodes.

Patrol Boat was about the activities of the crew of a Royal Australian Navy patrol boat which patrolled Australia's coastline. The series was produced with the co-operation of the Royal Australian Navy.

Two fictional RAN patrol boats were depicted in the series. Attack class patrol boat HMAS Ambush (portrayed by HMA Ships Advance and Bombard) was used in the first season, with filming taking place during 1978 and 1979 around Sydney Harbour, Pittwater, Ku-ring-gai Chase, and the Hawkesbury River. For the second season, the crew transferred to the newer Fremantle class patrol boat HMAS Defiance (portrayed by HMA Ships Launceston, Townsville, Warrnambool, Whyalla, and Wollongong).

The series is similar to the BBC series Warship, screened by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation from 1976, before Patrol Boat. Although the 2007 drama Sea Patrol is based on the same subject, it is not intended to be a follow on to Patrol Boat.