Small unit riverine craft



The small unit riverine craft (SURC) is rigid-hull, armed and armored patrol boat used by the U.S. Marines and U.S. Navy to maintain control of rivers and inland waterways. They are similar in size and purpose to the much older Patrol Boat, River vessels used during the Vietnam War.

According to the Navy, “The primary mission of the SURC is to provide tactical mobility and a limited weapons platform for the ground combat element of a Marine Air Ground Task Force in littoral and riverine environments.” The boat’s secondary mission includes “command and control, reconnaissance, logistic/resupply, medevac, counter-drug operations, humanitarian assistance, peacekeeping, and noncombatant evacuation operations.”

The boat is transportable by C-130 Hercules aircraft and can be launched from its trailer at lakeside.

The boats were first deployed to Iraq and were used there by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. The United States Navy Riverine Squadrons, units of the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC) used the boats to patrol strategic areas of Iraq.

The boats are built by Raytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems, with a contract to build up to 100 boats. Raytheon’s contract partners are SAFE Boats International of Port Orchard, Washington and Boat Master of Fort Myers, Florida.

The United States transferred six SURC patrol boats 25 September 2013 to the Philippine Marine Corps to provide a platform for command and control, reconnaissance, logistic/resupply, medical evacuation, counter-drug operations, humanitarian assistance, peacekeeping and non-combatant evacuation operations & will be deployed to augment sea-based forces to address terrorism and lawlessness.