NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — Naval Station Norfolk will have five new harbor security boats sporting numerous improvements, the first upgrade since 2010.

They consider the new boats the Cadillacs of HSBs.

Gates and fences protect the base, but there are none of those out on the water. That’s where the harbor security boats come in.

Petty Officer First Class David Harrington has been aboard for two years.

“We have all these warships and assets,” said Petty Officer First Class Harrington, who has been aboard for two years, “so we’re kind of like an early warning system in a sense.”

But because the boats hadn’t been updated in over a decade, officials said it was time for an upgrade.

John Schmeckenbecher, marine equipment program manager with the Commander Navy Region Mid-Atlantic, ran through what makes the new boats better than the old.

“Modernized, upgraded navigation system crew and comfort for the sailors that are out there doing the harbor security mission,” Schmeckenbecher said. “They were definitely needed.”

That includes a defining V-shaped hull.

“We can reach higher speeds and make more tactical maneuvers,” Harrington said, explaining the benefits of the different shape.

He told us the new boats will help tremendously to protect the base.

“It’s overall an increased and proficient way of providing security for the war fighting assets, the ships themselves and the sailors on board.”

Norfolk Naval Shipyard and Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story are scheduled to receive the new HSBs before the end of the year.