New Aluminum Catamaran Tech Introduced

New aluminum catamaran technology is being introduced into the U.S. Virgin Islands, where they are embracing the catamaran concept. The Virgin Island Department of Planning and Natural Resources/Police has placed in active service its first aluminum catamaran, manufactured using patented-protected technology, by Mission Marine, Ltd., in Sandusky, Ohio. The boat is based at the DPNR/Police facility in St. Thomas. The Mission 338 has the capability for extended offshore patrol and is a multi-agency craft that serves a variety of missions including DPNR, Police/Law Enforcement, Fisheries, SAR, Homeland Security, Drug Enforcement, and Port Security. This Mission 338 also has the added feature of a hydraulic patent-pending bow ramp and is powered by twin Mecury Verado 275 hp outboards, which give it shallow water capabilities. Mission Marine, Ltd. delivered the vessel and provided a one-day on-water training session. Even though the boat is a law enforcement vessel, because it is a catamaran, many recreational boaters turned out to take a closer look at it. At one time, aluminum catamaran high speed ferries were only seen in Australia and New Zealand but now are seen world-wide.