Patrol Boat “AUDAZ” P-45

The Commanding Officer and crew of the Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) ‘Audaz’ welcomes you and invites you to visit this website. The ‘Audaz’, built by NAVANTIA, is the fifth ‘Meteoro’-class OPV of a series of six. The P-45 was delivered to the Spanish Navy in July 2018.

The ‘Audaz’ is the first of the second batch of Navantia’s OPVs (BAM in its Spanish initials). The ship will be stationed in Cartagena. These offshore patrol vessels are modern warships with stat-of-the-art technology and a high level of automatism resulting in efficient and smaller crews.

This is the fourth Spanish Navy ship with that name. The first one was a small gunship built in 1891. The second ‘Audaz’ was a destroyer delivered to the Spanish Navy in 1898 which took part in several battles of different Spanish-American wars of independence. The ship was later deployed to the Moroccan coast before being decommissioned in 1924. The third ‘Audaz’ was a Spanish version of the French ‘Le Fier’-class torpedo boats built in Ferrol in 1952.

These ships have been designed to conduct maritime interdiction (MIO) operations. The operations include tasks such as shipping control, merchant traffic protection, intelligence, VBSS (visit, board, search seizure) missions, protection against terrorist attacks and piracy, etc.

Owing to the new and emerging threats and risks, the traditional terms of maritime interdiction have been supplemented by the much more ample and comprehensive concept of Maritime Security Operations (MSO). These operations can be organized and conducted in collaboration with other State agencies with responsibilities in the maritime domain. Tasks such as protection of SLOCs, counter-piracy and counter-terrorist missions, protection of critical infrastructures, SAR, fight against sea pollution, etc.

The crew consists of 49 people: 9 officers, 9 NCOs and 31 seamen and ratings.

The P-45 can embark a medium-sized helicopter (SH-60B or AB-212) with its air personnel (17 people) to enhance the ship’s surveillance and other capabilities.

To reinforce MIO operations and her own security, the ‘Audaz’ can also accommodate a Marine Corps security team.

The main mission of the OPVs is to contribute to national maritime security, normally through maritime security operations (MSO) and naval presence to protect national interests, either separately or in collaboration with other departments with responsibilities in the maritime domain. The execution of these tasks results in the protection of critical sea lines of communication, the fight against piracy and illicit trafficking, the fight against terrorism, the protection of critical infrastructures, natural resources and the underwater cultural heritage, in addition to the fight against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

During her short operational life, the 'Audaz' has deployed twice in the Gulf of Guinea in the course of a maritime and cooperative security mission. The ship has also participated in several national MSOs, operating as part of the operational structure of the Armed Forces under command of the JEMAD (Chief of the Defense Staff).

The 'Audaz' has also performed as flagship of the Commander of the Spanish Navy's Mine Countermeasures Force (COMTEMECOM). The vessel has also been the first naval unit simultaneously operating up to 4 unmanned systems, a key technological milestone recently achieved during the allied exercises ‘Dynamic Messenger 2022’.