Chula Vista yard finishes new Navy boat

By Gary Robbins, UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
Thursday, July 29, 2010 at 9:56 a.m.

(Note to readers: We'll be publishing some defense news here until our new defense blog launches in a few weeks.)

Marine Group Boat Works of Chula Vista has finished building the first of three Range Support Craft (RTSC-110) boats that it is constructing for the Navy under a contract worth more than $30 million.

The boatyard expanded its workforce by 30 people to construct the 114-foot RTSC’s, which represent the next generation of Torpedo Weapon Retrieval boats that have long been used by the Navy. The new boat, which has an all-alumimum hull, will primarily be used to recover aerial targets and weapons, and to launch small high-speed craft. The Navy does a lot of target practice in Southern California waters.

In a release, the Navy said, “The RTSC-110 class of craft will satisfy aviation, surface and subsurface warfare training requirements. The Navy significantly benefits from this multi-mission support capability through cost savings associated with a reduced inventory of more capable craft and modernization of maintenance intensive legacy platforms.â€