Part of the Diving Support Vessel category, this ship is deployed by the Tunisian authorities as part of the stabilization and pacification operations in North Africa and in the Mediterranean area. In particular, the vessel is used to train the Zarzis diving school students.
The Zarzis A710 is a 36-meter mono-hull boat able to carry 12 crewmen along with 18 divers. With a top speed of 17 knots and a cruising speed of 12 knots, the vessel is equipped with a compression chamber, a system to produce, purify and store breathable air and therapeutic gas, and a diving bell to transport divers into the water up to 100 metres deep. A sophisticated DP2 positioning system, combining the push of the main propellers with that of the bow thrusters, ensures the boat of maintaining the precise same position. This equipment follows the main international standards and those of RINA, the Italian Naval Registry.
This Diving support vessel is equipped with a D.P.2 type Dynamic position system manifatured by one of the leading companies in this field (Kongsberg maritime srl).
The vessel is also equipped with a LARS (launch and recovery) system that enables the safe immersion and recover of the diving bell.
The diving bell is a semi-open structure holding up to 4 divers. Each diver has an umbilical cable that provides breathable gas supply, an audio-video communications and hot water supply to control body temperature. The structure can achieve the considerable operational depth of 100m.
A system for the production of breathable air and NITROX, a special breathing gas mix with a greater oxygen component than normal air, has been installed on board. This gas mix can increase diving times at average depths and contextually reduce the amount of nitrogen, the main gas responsible for any decompression sickness, in the air.
Mono hull
Lower deck:
Main deck:
Fuel tank | 25164 lt |
Fresh water tank | 12080 lt |
Max. speed | 17 kn |
Cruising speed | 12,5 kn |
Range at cruising speed | >700 nm |
Gensets | 4x John Deer 6090SFM85G5 250 kVA |
Emergency Genset | 1x John Deer 6068TFM50E5 95 kVA |
Two Fixed propellers.
n.2 bow thruster Romagnoli BTX 2500 – 132 kW ciascuno
n.2 stern thruster Romagnoli BTX 1500 – 75 kW ciascuno
Motori principali | 2 x MTU 12V2000 M84 |
Potenza motori | 1220 kW @ 2450 giri/minuto |
Length overall | 37.40 m |
Moulded length | 36.62 m |
Maximum beam | 8.60 m |
Inside beam | 7.00 m |
Dinamic position | Kongsberg DP2 |
Draught | 1.70 m |
Depth | 3,60 m |
Full load displacement | 282,5 t |
Divers | 18 |
Crew | 12+1 |
Transmission | 2x BPM surface propellers |
The hull is in Steel AH36 – Grade “A”.
The Superstructurer is in 5086 alloy.
Gearboxes | 2 x ZF 3351; reduction ratio 3,519:1. |