Kris-class patrol craft

Kris-class — a class of patrol boats produced by Vosper & Company (later Vosper Thornycroft) in Portsmouth, United Kingdom, for Malaysia. The ships of this class were produced in three versions. The first two were originally called the Sri Kehah-class. In connection with the development and expansion of the navy's role, especially after taking responsibility for patrolling the waters of Sabah and Sarawak, the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) in 1965 ordered the third version of patrol boats from the British company Vosper, which became known as the «Kris» class. The Kris-class ships were equipped with more powerful engines, modern weaponry, and a new Decca radar system. As the boats of the previous versions were also upgraded, the Sri Kehah-class ceased to exist, and all ships came to be referred to as the Kris-class.

The last patrol boat of this class was commissioned in 1968. The service life of these vessels exceeded 30 years. Initially designed for coastal patrols, with the adoption of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) concept, these patrol boats were deployed for open-sea surveillance. However, gradually, the Kris-class patrol boats became inadequate to meet the navy's extended operational demands, despite undergoing modernization over the years. Primarily, this limitation was due to their restricted patrol capabilities within 32 km from the shore, while Malaysia's territorial waters extend over more than 320 km.

Over time, some of the patrol boats became «donors» of spare parts for others. In 2006, the majority of the remaining Kris-class ships were transferred to the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA). As of today, only two patrol boats, KD Sri Perlis and KD Sri Johor, are still in operation, despite being over 50 years old.