Austal Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Bellamy , commented that Austal is proud to have been selected to work with the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service once again, and that the contract is strategically important for the Western Australian company. “ The Cape Class contract cements Austal’s position as the sole provider of Australia’s Border Protection Command patrol vessels, and as a leading supplier of Australia’s front line border security and surveillance capabilities. It also provides us with the opportunity to continue to work with our long standing partner, DMS Maritime, to provide in-service support for the new Cape Class fleet. This contract is significant for Austal in that it is a key first step in the repositioning of our Henderson facilities as a defence focused operation, and reaffirms our position as an emerging global defence prime contractor. Having already designed and built the Royal Australian Navy’s Armidale Class Patrol Boats, today we are the prime contractor for these new Customs vessels as well as for two multi-ship US Navy programs; the Littoral Combat Ships and Joint High Speed Vessels .”