The 26 FT MILITAR boat is a new design produced by the Colombian company Mar 10. This boat aims to replace the old Marine Infantry boats used in Colombia, also making a leap into the international market where it has been offered to various Armed Forces, with special inclusion in the specialized fairs held throughout Latin America in 2023.
In this way, Zona Militar had the exclusive opportunity to interview Andrés Giraldo, General Manager of Mar 10, in order to learn more about this new product, which, together with its larger counterpart, the 36 FT MILITAR, already in service, constitutes the company’s most important offer for the control of waterways, in the fight against transnational crime, especially against subversive actors and narcoterrorists, and in the battle against crimes such as drug trafficking, human trafficking, arms smuggling, rape, and the alteration and illegal exploitation of natural resources.
While these two products are indeed designed for the military sector, it should be clarified that Mar 10 also builds and sells civilian vessels that can be used to support communities and by individuals. In this regard, Dr. Giraldo informed us that: “We are working on some projects with the United Nations, mainly school transport boats, workboats, but also to provide security for community leaders.”
ZM: To date, has your company managed to position its products within the Colombian Navy? Can you tell us more about it, and what sales have you made abroad?
“We already have 14 units deployed in different complex areas of the country for security; they are in Tumaco and Turbo, being shielded units. Also, at the international level, sales of some models have been made, such as maritime ambulances for the United Nations, and those are the sales we have made as exports.”
ZM: Can you tell us more about your company, where it operates, and how many jobs it generates?
“Well, we are located in the municipality of Candelaria in Juanchito, next to Cali, just past the river. We generate around 50 direct jobs in that area, and we are the only industry currently in Cali that works with this type of boats.”
ZM: Regarding the troop transport boat that you offer to the Military Forces today, could you give us a brief overview and characteristics of this?
“The troop transport boat is a boat that can carry 25 equipped soldiers, each with 150 kg of equipment. It is a boat that has two 250-horsepower engines and gives us a maximum speed of 35 knots. It is a boat designed with high maneuverability in riverside areas and high-speed capability with a lot of firepower. It is a vessel with 360 degrees of firing capacity, approved with a .50 caliber machine gun and 2 M-60s on the sides. A front or rear MK grenade launcher can be exchanged. It can be hoisted through its hard points and is built with level 3 armor around the entire hull.”
ZM: I am very intrigued by the ability of this ship to be hoisted, and it has been observed that in other countries, these types of boats are used as landing craft. Could this system be applied for amphibious landing craft?
“Well, the hoisting system is basically for lifting the boats into LCU, for ships that have the possibility of reaching the beach or disembarking. But really, in Colombia, the hoisting points are used in local operations to extract and launch them within the area, that is the objective, since for airborne operations, more powerful helicopters would be required, which we do not have in our country.”
ZM: Regarding the ability to be transported in the C-130 Hercules, which is currently the workhorse of the Colombian Air Force. Does your product have these capabilities?
“The boat was designed based on the measurements of the C-130, so it is a boat that can be transported in that type of aircraft.”
We thank Dr. Andrés Giraldo for his time, and we hope that his company continues to be a beacon of solutions for the Ibero-American river forces, generating work and development for the Colombian Pacific.
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