Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto commissioned the Mexican Navy’s tenth Tenochtitlan-class patrol vessel ARM Chichen Itza (PC 340) in a ceremony on November 6.
The ship was built at the Mexican Navy yard in Tampico (ASTIMAR 1) and launched in June 2017.
The 42-meter patrol vessels are based on the Damen Stan Patrol 4207 design for which the Dutch shipbuilder provided engineering, material package, technical assistance and crew training.
The vessels are named after Mexican historical sites and will perform surveillance operations, interdiction, search and rescue operations in addition to combating illegal activities at sea in the Mexican maritime zones.
Mexican defense ministry envisions to build a total of 20 vessels in the class.
Former USS Hurst sunk on the same day
Coinciding with the commissioning of ARM Chichen Itza was the controlled sinking of ARM Comodoro Manuel Azueta (A06), a former US Navy Edsall-class destroyer USS Hurst bought by Mexico from the US in 1973.
The ship was scuttled in the Rizo reef zone off Antón Lizardo, Veracruz, where she will serve as an artificial reef.