ANG Guardian Angel (GA) and Special Tactics (ST) personnel require open
ocean maritime operations equipment. GA needs a hard hulled boat (HHB) or rigid-hulled
inflatable boat (RHIB), air-droppable by C-130s. Boats capable of supporting up to four litter
patients and 6-8 operators, propeller-driven, compatible with GA communications equipment,
and equipped with forward-looking infrared, sonar, and radar. Existing Joint and GA maritime
equipment does not meet the current combatant command requirements for the personnel
recovery (PR) mission, presenting a significant risk to the mission and friendly forces. Current
unit type code-tasked maritime mobility is primarily filled by inflatable boats with significant
range and protection limitations. Current wartime requirements include rapidly deployable, airdroppable,
defensible, hard-hulled watercraft that are open-ocean and littoral capable to support
PR training and operations. Current mission sets require GA to operate in the open ocean in
extreme environmental conditions without direct support for several days. Combatant Command
requirements also include GA units to have organic passive and active defensive capability. This
platform requires a modular mounting system capable of supporting crew-served weapons and
other accessories. Additionally, the boat should be cloaked to reduce the IR and visual signature
and be outfitted with environmental protection for the craft and personnel. Each of the three GA
squadrons require three HHB/RHIB boat delivery platforms, and associated equipment
parachutes. Both ST squadrons require one HHB/RHIB boat delivery platform, and associated
equipment parachutes.