Norway has commissioned the first prototype rigid-sidewall air-cushion guided-missile patrol boat, the Skjold (Shield) and plans to build seven more. The boats are 153.5 feet long and displace 260 tons (unusually light due to their glass-reinforced plastic hulls. The boat was able to make 57 knots in calm seas and cruise at a sustained 44 knots in Sea State 3. It can operate in water as shallow as 1m. The boat has a crew of 15 and is designed to spend 14 days at sea. The boat carries a 76mm OtoBreda Super Rapid dual-purpose cannon. The boats will carry the New Anti-Ship Missile when it becomes available in 2004. This is a high subsonic missile with a range over 100km. It carries a 120kg warhead.--Stephen V Cole