The Mk 6 Assault Boat is an

assault boat An assault boat is a boat used for landing in combat, specifically for inland waters. Their lightweight construction allows for them to be carried by multiple men on foot. They can either be paddled or fitted with an outboard motor for high-speed ...

used by the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

. It is usually paddled for a silent or night-time approach, but can be fitted with an

outboard motor An outboard motor is a propulsion system for boats, consisting of a self-contained unit that includes engine, gearbox and propeller or jet drive, designed to be affixed to the outside of the transom. They are the most common motorised method ...

. Its built from

glass reinforced plastic Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cl ...

and is light enough to be carried by four men. The Mk 6 Assault Boat is used as a versatile, general purpose craft that was designed to carry up to 10 fully equipped troops or 1,043 kg of stores. It also makes a useful ferry craft when fitted with an outboard motor. Assault Boats may be stacked six deep for storage or transport. Whilst basic and often overlooked it has been in constant operational use since its introduction, including conducting patrols on

Helmand Helmand (Pashto/Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering area. The province contains 18 ...

Reservoir in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

and proved highly useful in the Southern

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

Marshes, especially over the last year of British Operations on the

Qarmat Ali Qarmat Ali ( ,i.e. Ali River), known locally as Al-Qarmah and historically as Nahr Adi, is an Iraqi town located in Al Hartha, Al-Hartha District, Basra. The river that gives it its name runs through it, and it is the largest river in Basra. It is ...

Waterway, north of

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

where the ability to carry the boat over shallows made it much more employable than the faster but larger

Rigid Raider The Rigid Raider (RRC) is a series of fast raiding and assault craft made by RTK Marine, a subsidiary of Halmatic, part of BAE Systems Surface Ships. They are primarily in service with two branches of the British Armed Forces: The Royal Navy (i ...

or Combat Support Boat.

References

British Army equipment Amphibious warfare vessels of the United Kingdom Landing craft Military boats {{UK-mil-stub

See also

References