Tongan Maritime Force

Tonga Royal Navy
Tonga Royal Navy
	The Tongan patrol boat VOEA Savea (P203) underway in Sydney Harbour in 2013.
Active	10 March 1973
Country	Tonga
Type	Navy
Role	Naval warfare
Insignia
Naval Ensign

The Tonga Royal Navy is the naval arm of His Majesty's Armed Forces of Tonga.

History

The TDS was founded on 10 March 1973 by King Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV, who also commissioned the first craft on that date.[1] The first craft was VOEA Ngahau Koula (P101), followed by VOEA Ngahau Siliva (P102) - the names mean Golden Arrow and Silver Arrow respectively.[1] They were crewed by volunteers, but are no longer in service.[1]

Royal Yacht

Titilupe , Touliki Base,

Patrol Boat Flotilla

The Pacific-class patrol craft were provided to Tonga by Australia as part of the Pacific Patrol Boat Program. The TDS' main base is Touliki Base, in Nuku'alofa.[1] As of September 2021, it has two Patrol vessels:

	Type	Class	Origin	Displacement	Name	Pennant number	Commissioned	Homeport
	Patrol Boat	Guardian-class patrol boat	Australia		VOEA Ngahau Koula	P301	2019	Nukuʻalofa
	Patrol Boat	Guardian-class patrol boat	Australia		VOEA Ngahau Siliva	P302	2021	Nukuʻalofa

Logistic Support Flotilla

	Type	Class	Origin	Displacement	Name	Pennant number	Commissioned	Homeport
	Landing Craft Mechanized	LCM-8	Australia	113 tonnes	VOEA Late (C315)	C315		Nukuʻalofa
	Tanker		France	4,000 tonnes	VOEA Lomipeau (A301)	A301	1995	Nukuʻalofa

Marine Battalion

The Royal Tongan Marines is a single Battalion with a HQ and Support Company and 3 Light Infantry Companies, based at Fuaʻamotu.

Maritime Aviation

Maritime Aviation Wing based at Fuaʻamotu International Airport.

Aircraft	Origin	Type	Versions	In service	Notes
Beechcraft G.18S	USA	Search and rescue	SNB-1 Kansan	1
American Champion Citabria	USA	Maritime patrol	7KCAB	1

References

Moore, John (1984). Jane's All The World's Fighting Ships. Jane's Publishing. p. 465. ISBN 0710607741.

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[Janes-1] Moore, John (1984). Jane's All The World's Fighting Ships. Jane's Publishing. p. 465. ISBN 0710607741.