BRP Boracay (FPB-2401) is the lead ship of four Boracay class Patrol Boats built by OCEA of France for the

Philippine Coast Guard The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG; ) is the third armed uniformed service of the country attached to the Philippines' Department of Transportation, tasked primarily with enforcing laws within Philippine waters, conducting maritime security ope ...

based on the Ocea FPB 72 design.

Construction, delivery and commissioning

BRP ''Boracay'' was launched in April 2018 at the OCEA site in Les Sables d’Olonne,

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and was commissioned into service in

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

in October 2018 along with its sister ship, the .

Operational history

In early October 2018, BRP ''Boracay'' made its first deployment in the island it was named after,

Boracay Boracay (; sometimes shortened by non-natives as Bora) is a resort island in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines, located off the northwest coast of Panay, Panay Island. It has a total land area of , under the jurisdiction of thre ...

in the province of

Aklan Aklan, officially the Province of Aklan, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. Its capital and largest town is Kalibo. The province is situated in the northwest portion of Panay, Panay Islan ...

Western Visayas Western Visayas (; ; ) is an Regions of the Philippines, administrative region in the Philippines, numerically designated as Region VI. The region comprises the islands of Panay and Guimaras Island, Guimaras. It consists of five Provinces of the ...

. In late October 2018, the ship made its first rescue when it along with assisted in the transfer of passengers of the M/V ''Super Shuttle 18'' which was stranded off the port of

Malay, Aklan Malay , officially the Municipality of Malay ( Aklanon: ''Banwa it Malay''; Hiligaynon: ''Banwa sang Malay''; ), is a municipality in the province of Aklan, Philippines. It is the richest municipality in the province in terms of revenue. Accordi ...

due to engine trouble. All of the 142 passengers of M/V Super Shuttle 18 were later safely brought to the Caticlan Jetty Port. In November 2018, BRP ''Boracay'' participated in a joint Anti-Piracy Drill with the

Japan Coast Guard The is the coast guard responsible for the protection of the Geography of Japan#Composition, topography and geography, coastline of Japan under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. It consists of about ...

ship Echigo (PLH-08) and PCG ships the and . The drill was held in

Manila Bay Manila Bay (; ) is a natural harbor that serves the Port of Manila (on Luzon), in the Philippines. Strategically located around the Manila, capital city of the Philippines, Manila Bay facilitated commerce and trade between the Philippines and ...

and featured the mock hijacking of a vessel and arrest of the perpetrators aboard the ship. In January 2019, the ship together with the was positioned at the

Manila Baywalk The Baywalk is a popular seaside promenade and beachfront overlooking Manila Bay along Roxas Boulevard in Manila, the Philippines. The Baywalk is a two-kilometre stretch from the US Embassy near Rizal Park up to the Cultural Center of the Philip ...

to serve as Command Post and alternate Medical Evacuation Post in case of Emergencies during the annual ''Traslación''

Procession A procession is an organized body of people walking in a formal or ceremonial manner. History Processions have in all peoples and at all times been a natural form of public celebration, as forming an orderly and impressive ceremony. Religious ...

of the

Black Nazarene ''Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno'' (), officially and liturgically known as Jesús Nazareno, and popularly known as the Black Nazarene (; ), is a life-sized dark statue of Jesus Christ carrying the True Cross. The venerated image is enshrined in ...

image."Coast Guard heightens Security Preps for ‘Traslacion’"
/ref>

References

Ships of the Philippine Coast Guard 2018 ships Ships built in France {{Mil-ship-stub