B.A.P. Pisco, the lead ship of the Peruvian Navy’s landing platform dock ships, has started sea trials, the Peruvian Navy announced April 19.
Pisco got underway from the Peruvian state-owned shipyard SIMA (Servicios Industriales de la Marina S.A.) in Callao, where it was launched in April 2017, after starting construction in July 2013.
Should all go according to plans, B.A.P. Pisco will be commissioned into Peruvian Navy service by the end of 2018.
Pisco is the first of two ships in the class, based on the design of Makassar-class LPDs South Korean shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) initially provided for the Indonesian Navy. PT PAL, the Indonesian shipbuilder who built the vessels under a transfer of technology agreement, subsequently built two vessels for the Philippine Navy which refers to them as Tarlac-class.
A second Peruvian Navy LPD is also under construction. It was named B.A.P. Paita in a keel-laying ceremony held on December 14, 2017.
The Peruvian Navy LPDs, built under a contract signed between Peru and DSME in 2012, are 122 meters in length and displace 7,290 tons. They feature a well deck for deployment of amphibious vehicles and are capable roll-on/roll-off operations.
The ships’ flight deck is capable of accommodating two Sikorsky Sea King helicopters in service with Peruvian naval forces.