CHARLESTON, S.C. — The Coast Guard Cutter James (WMSL- 754) and crew returned to Charleston, Aug. 14, following an 82-day counter-drug patrol in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, the Coast Guard 7th District said in an Aug. 16 release.  

The James crew offloaded nearly 51,000 pounds of cocaine and marijuana worth an estimated $1.4 billion, Aug. 5, 2021, at Port Everglades, Florida. 

Working alongside other Coast Guard cutters, U.S. Navy ships and international allies, the James patrol efforts were in direct support of drug interdiction efforts in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific Ocean to put increased pressure on the drug trafficking organizations operating in Central and South America.  

During their patrol, the James crew, augmented by an embarked armed helicopter aircrew from the Coast Guard’s Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron (HITRON), successfully interdicted 11 drug smuggling vessels and seized or disrupted nearly 13,608 kilograms of cocaine. The James crew also successfully executed two search and rescue cases off the coast of Florida, saving eight distressed mariners over Memorial Day weekend.  

“This patrol highlights our crew’s continued commitment to protecting the maritime border from our adversaries. Amid the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Capt. Todd Vance, James commanding officer. “The James crew demonstrated supreme resilience and the results of their exceptional performance are being showcased today.”  

The Coast Guard Cutter James is one of three 418-foot National Security Cutters (NSC) homeported in North Charleston, South Carolina. With its robust command, control, communication, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance equipment, the NSC is the most technologically advanced ship in the Coast Guard’s fleet. NSCs are equipped with three state-of-the-art small boats, a stern boat launch system, dual aviation facilities, and serve as an afloat command and control platform for complex law enforcement and national security missions involving the Coast Guard and numerous partner agencies.  

JUNEAU, Alaska — Crews aboard Coast Guard Cutters Midgett and Healy patrolled the Bering and Chukchi Seas off the coast of Alaska this summer to demonstrate the Coast Guard’s commitment to ensuring a safe and secure Arctic and to work respectively with Canadian and Russian counterparts on shared maritime interests, the Coast Guard 17th District said in an Aug. 12 release.  

In late July, the crew of Coast Guard Cutter Midgett, one of the Service’s National Security Cutters, conducted combined operations and training with the Canadian coast guard Ship Sir Wilfrid Laurier in the Chukchi Sea, a joint patrol of the U.S.-Russia maritime boundary north of the Diomede Islands with the Russian Border Guard vessel Kamchatka, and a joint transit of the Bering Strait with the Coast Guard Cutter Healy, one of the service’s two operational polar icebreakers. In each case, Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak crews forward-deployed to Kotzebue, Alaska in an HC-130J Hercules airplane supported the operations. 

The simultaneous presence of Healy and Midgett in the Arctic region signals the increasing demand for the merged icebreaking and maritime security capability required of future Polar Security Cutters. 

Midgett is the Coast Guard’s eighth National Security Cutter and is homeported in Honolulu. Featuring advanced command-and-control capabilities, national security cutters are the flagship of the Coast Guard’s fleet, deploying globally to confront national security threats, strengthen maritime governance, and promote economic prosperity. While National Security Cutters possess advanced operational capabilities, more than 70% of the Coast Guard’s offshore presence is the service’s aging fleet of medium-endurance cutters, many of which are over 50 years old and approaching the end of their service life. Replacing the fleet with new Offshore Patrol Cutters is one of the Coast Guard’s top acquisition priorities. The first Offshore Patrol Cutter is scheduled to be delivered in 2022.  

Healy is a medium icebreaker capable of conducting a wide range of Coast Guard operations including search and rescue, ship escorts, environmental protection, and enforcement of laws and treaties in the polar regions. Uniquely equipped to conduct scientific operations, Healy is also the Nation’s premiere high-latitude research vessel. Healy is the only U.S. military surface vessel that routinely deploys to the ice-covered waters of the Arctic to provide access and secure national interests related to our maritime borders and natural resources.  

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Coast Guard and Puerto Rico Police crews rescued 48 Haitian migrants Aug. 13, stranded on Monito Cay, Puerto Rico in the Mona Passage, the Coast Guard 7th District said in a release. 

“This was a very complex rescue and the migrants were in pretty bad shape after being abandoned by smugglers in this austere and highly dangerous environment,” said Lt. Benjamin Williamsz, Coast Guard Cutter Winslow Griesser commanding officer. “The Winslow Griesser crew performed superbly, while working with our Puerto Rico Police and Border patrol partners, in rescuing and saving the migrants from the cliff’s edge and jagged rocks and bringing them to the safety of the cutter.” 

Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector San Juan were initially contacted late Wednesday night by the aircrew of a Coast Guard HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft, who spotted the migrants flashing a light and waving their hands for assistance. 

Coast Guard watchstanders proceeded to divert the Coast Guard Cutter Winslow Griesser and launched an MH-60T Jayhawk helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen to further investigate and rescue any persons in distress. A Puerto Rico Police marine unit also responded to assist. 

Upon arriving on scene, the crew of the Winslow Griesser located the migrants, 26 men and 22 women, on the side of the cliff and taking shelter inside nearby caves. The Winslow Griesser launched their Over-the-Horizon IV small boat to recover the migrants.  

The migrants were transported to Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, where they were transferred to awaiting U.S. Customs and Border Protection Border Patrol agents, who rendered assistance to the migrants along with emergency medical service personnel at the scene. 
 

PORTLAND, Maine – The Coast Guard Cutter Finback (WPB 87314) officially arrived at its new homeport in Portland, Maine, Aug. 11, the Coast Guard 1st District said in a release. 

Mooring alongside the Coast Guard Cutter Sitkinak (WPB 1329), the Finback is a coastal patrol boat with a crew of 11 men and women whose area of operations ranges from Sandy Hook, New Jersey to the Maine/Canadian Border. 
 
“We are excited to see the Coast Guard Cutter Finback relocate to Portland,” said Capt. Amy Florentino, commander, Sector Northern New England. “As a service with a big mission and limited resources, we are constantly seeking ways to be more efficient and effective. Portland is central location for the cutter to suppler both law enforcement and search and rescue operations. The change of homeport will also allow our team to provide better mission support for cutter maintenance and personnel needs. While the cutter’s homeport is changing, its mission and service to the public aren’t. As one of the only two patrol boats in our fleet, Finback and the crew will continue to operate throughout Sector New England’s area of responsibility.” 

The crew will significantly increase the Coast Guard’s operational presence and maximize logistical support in Portland, and will continue to aid in maritime law enforcement, ports and waterways, coastal security, marine environmental protection and commercial vessel safety mission-sets. 

Bollinger Shipyards Inc. of Lockport, Louisiana, built USCGC Finback in December 1999. This vessel employs the latest in technology. A fully integrated electronics suite coordinates radar, satellite navigation, gyrocompass, autopilot and computer-generated charts to form a compact, but user-friendly command-and-control system for all ship’s missions. A unique stern launch/recovery system is vastly superior in safety, speed, and manning requirements. Even during inclement weather, the small boat can be launched and recovered with a minimal crew on deck. It also allows for safe deployment in a much larger sea state than previous systems. The engine room incorporates electronic control and monitoring system with video readouts that can be monitored from the engine room or the bridge. For the first time, the crew onboard can be a combination of male and female resulting from the multiple staterooms throughout the cutter.  

The Finback is one of the most advanced coastal patrol boats in the world and will help the Coast Guard remain the world’s premier maritime organization for many years to come. 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The crew of Coast Guard Cutter Valiant (WMEC 621) returned to Naval Station Mayport, July 20, after completing a 53-day patrol in the Caribbean Sea, the Coast Guard 7th District said in an Aug. 11 release. 

Coast Guard Cutter Valiant crew patrolled over 7,800 nautical miles in the Caribbean Sea, conducting a variety of operations in support of Coast Guard District 7.  

The Valiant crew then executed five interdiction cases involving 70 migrants and supported the safe interdiction and repatriation of over 100 migrants. The Valiant crew rescued four Cuban migrants at night in heavy seas who were clinging to the side of a stopped merchant vessel that had spotted their sinking raft in a shipping lane northwest of Cay Sal Bank.  

The Valiant crew partnered with the USS Wichita (LCS-13) and Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane (WMEC 903), to safely transfer three suspected narcotics traffickers and 1,900 kilograms of cocaine with an estimated street value of $72.7 million for prosecution in the United States. The Valiant crew then conducted storm avoidance from Hurricane Elsa while maintaining offshore search and rescue and disaster response presence north of Hispaniola.  

While refueling and resupplying in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Valiant’s crew showed their adaptability by conducting an emergency sortie with just a few hours’ notice to support international interests off the coast of Haiti following the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. While conducting response operations off Haiti, Valiant also partnered with the Coast Guard Cutter Confidence (WMEC 619) to safely transfer an additional 370 kilograms of cocaine with a street value of over $10.1 million for disposition in the United States.  

“I could not be more proud of the women and men of the Valiant,” said Cmdr. Jeff Payne, Valiant’s commanding officer. “From protecting our nation’s borders, executing counter-narcotics operations, search and rescue and finally responding to an international crisis, Valiant crew overcame every challenge and continuously flexed to meet the next mission. From the most junior Coast Guard Academy cadets experiencing their first time at sea to “Old Salts” finishing their last days underway, every single person stepped up and leaned in to achieve operational success and safeguard our nation. We pride ourselves on being a true multi-mission asset and the entire Valiant crew showcased that over the last 53 days.” 

The Valiant is a multi-mission 210-foot medium-endurance cutter. Missions include search and rescue, maritime law enforcement, marine environmental protection, homeland security and national defense operations. 

WASHINGTON – The Coast Guard completed the “Holistic Study and Analysis for Recruiting and Retention of Underrepresented Minorities” (URM) as part of its commitment to create and retain a more inclusive workforce, the service’s headquarters said in an Aug. 11 release.  

The service initiated the study with researchers at RAND’s Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center (HSOAC) to produce a report that was released on Wednesday titled “Improving the Representation of Women and Racial/Ethnic Minorities Among United States Coast Guard Active-Duty Members.” 

The report analyzed the policies, programs, and practices that create potential barriers in attracting and retaining Underrepresented Minorities into Coast Guard ranks. The report also included recommendations to help the Coast Guard achieve its goal of creating a more inclusive workforce. 

“The Coast Guard continues to seek out opportunities to foster a more inclusive, respectful Coast Guard that produces a mission-ready workforce that reflects the public we serve,” said Adm. Linda Fagan, vice commandant of the Coast Guard. “This study builds on the findings in the 2019 RAND Women’s Retention Report and Holistic Analysis, establishes benchmarks, and gathers feedback from the workforce to help ensure all members can reach their full potential.” 

The findings and recommendations of the URM study focus in five key areas: diversity outreach and recruiting; career development; advancement and promotion; retention; and workforce climate.

The Coast Guard’s internal personnel readiness task force is taking immediate action on the recommendations of the URM study. Additionally, the Coast Guard is implementing the recommendations of both the URM and Women’s Retention Studies and will continue to execute the 2019-2023 Diversity & Inclusion Action Plan, which outlines 36-actions to measure outcomes, hold leadership accountable, and equip unit commanders with a standard set of resources to improve diversity and inclusion throughout the service.  

Additional information on Coast Guard diversity and inclusion efforts can be found here. 

LOCKPORT, La. — The U.S. Coast Guard has exercised a contract option to award Bollinger Shipyards LLC four additional Sentinel-class Fast Response Cutters (FRCs), the company announced in an Aug. 10 release. This announcement brings the total number of FRCs awarded to Bollinger up to 64 vessels since the program’s inception. To date, the U.S. Coast Guard has commissioned 43 FRCs into operational service.  

“We’re incredibly proud of the work we do at Bollinger, and we’re especially proud of our long history supporting the U.S. Coast Guard that stretches nearly four decades,” said Bollinger Shipyards President and CEO Ben Bordelon. “Our unique experience building for the Coast Guard is unparalleled and has shown time and time again that we can successfully deliver the highest quality vessels on a reliable, aggressive production schedule and cost, even in the most challenging circumstances, including the global pandemic and record hurricane season experienced over the past year. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the Coast Guard.” 

All four FRCs will be built at Bollinger’s Lockport, Louisiana, facility and are scheduled for delivery to the Coast Guard between fall 2024 and summer 2025.  

The FRC program has had a total economic impact of $1.7 billion since inception in material spending and directly supports more than 650 jobs in Southeast Louisiana. The program has indirectly created 1,690 new jobs from operations and capital investment and has an annual economic impact on GDP of $202 million, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Maritime Administration on the economic importance of the U.S. shipbuilding and repair industry. Bollinger sources over 271,000 different items for the FRC consisting of 282 million components and parts from 965 suppliers in 37 states. 

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Unmanned systems may be a solution for handling dirty, dull or dangerous tasks in the Arctic, but they’re no substitute for a U.S. flagged ship when it comes establishing presence in the Far North, a Coast Guard Arctic expert says.

“Unmanned systems are a great tool but they don’t deliver presence,” according to the Coast Guard Senior Arctic Advisor Shannon Jenkins. “Presence is a U.S. flagged [manned] sovereign vessel,” Jenkins told an Aug. 3 exhibit booth briefing at the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space expo at National Harbor, Maryland. “You can’t surge into the Arctic. You have to be up there.”

Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Karl Schultz has said repeatedly that “presence equals influence in the Arctic” to counter a resurgent Russia, and China — which styles itself a “near Arctic nation” — from ignoring the rules-based international order and modern maritime governance as they have done in other regions like the Black and South China seas.

Maritime domain awareness in the Arctic requires more than periodic exercises. It is important to understand how the environment is changing, Jenkins said, “So that we’re better prepared for when industry changes their operations up there, so we can be prepared to be up there and regulate, enforce and protect those operations as well as the U.S. citizens up there.”

The U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the waters off Alaska and the Aleutians is greater than all other American EEZs along the Pacific, Atlantic, Gulf coasts and U.S. territorial waters in the Central Pacific and the Caribbean. “That’s a lot of water,” Jenkins said, “so we have to go where the activity is.” That includes going where the fishing fleets, the cruise ships and the oil and gas explorers operate as climate change melts polar sea ice, opening up new sea lanes across the top of the world in summer as well as access to mineral resources and fish stocks long-hidden beneath the ice.

The Russian fishing fleet has begun experimental fishing in the Chukchi Sea, north of the Bering Strait “and that means the Coast Guard is going to be up there to monitor,” Jenkins said. Among worldwide fishery production, Alaska ranks seventh, and the six larger producers are all nation states, he said. Illegal, unlawful and unlicensed fishing is replacing piracy as the top global maritime security threat facing the nation, according to the Coast Guard.

“We’re going to need ice breakers, more ships, more planes, more helicopters, more people,” Jenkins said, adding those systems and platforms have to be able to operate in the austere conditions of the Arctic. “There’s a lot of icing and extreme winds. With unmanned aerial systems, we’ve had issues deploying in that region. Wind factors are just too great,” said Jenkins. “It’s also an access issue. That’s where the ice breakers are so essential. They’re our floating infrastructure.”

The Coast Guard currently has only two operating ice breakers, both of them old. Congress has provided funding for the first two Polar Security Cutters (PSCs), which will be heavy icebreakers. A contract was awarded to VT Halter in 2019 for the first PSC. Delivery is expected in 2026, Jenkins said.

KEY WEST, Fla. — The Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk’s crew returned to homeport Sunday, following a 52-day counter-drug deployment throughout the Eastern Pacific Ocean in support of U.S. Southern Command’s Joint Interagency Task Force South and the Eleventh Coast Guard District, the Coast Guard 7th District said in an Aug. 9 release.

During the patrol, the Mohawk made significant advances in combating transnational criminal organizations and stopped more than 12,000 pounds of illicit drugs, valued at over $218 million. 

The cutter’s crew, with a deployed Coast Guard Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron crew and MH-65 Dolphin helicopter, interdicted seven vessels, apprehended more than 20 suspected drug smugglers and seized 11,416 pounds of cocaine and 736 pounds of marijuana. While deployed, the Mohawk’s crew boarded five suspected drug smuggling vessels in less than two days. Later in the deployment, the Mohawk’s crew successfully interdicted two separate vessels smuggling cocaine and marijuana in less than a day. 

“I am extremely proud of this crew and all they have accomplished,” said Cmdr. Andrew Pate, commanding officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk. “Despite encountering some significant equipment and logistics challenges, the Mohawk crew rose to the occasion time and again, demonstrating superior tactical proficiency and dedication to this joint mission. Keeping a 30-year-old cutter fully mission capable for two months in a harsh environment wouldn’t be possible without partnerships on the water and unwavering support from back home. Mohawk’s success in the Eastern Pacific Ocean is reflective of an increased commitment by U.S. and international partners to detect, disrupt, and deter criminal activity destabilizing the region.” 

The Mohawk’s crew kicked off the deployment with a biannual shipboard training cycle off the coast Jacksonville, Florida. During a compressed week-long evaluation period, Mohawk’s crew demonstrated their knowledge and skills by completing 76 drills in the areas of damage control, navigation, seamanship, naval warfare, communications, medical response, engineering casualties and force protection. The crew’s efforts resulted in an average drill score of 96 percent, demonstrating excellence in all warfare areas. 

While underway, the Mohawk’s crew completed aviation, damage control, engineering, seamanship and navigation training to maintain operational readiness and prepare for future multi-mission deployments. 

The Mohawk’s crew also located, and successfully freed, a green sea turtle trapped in fishing gear off the coast of Central America. 

The Mohawk is the last built of the 270-foot Famous-class cutters, commissioned in March 1991 and homeported in Key West, Florida. 

ATLANTIC BEACH, N.C. — The USCGC Glen Harris (WPC 1144) became the U.S. Coast Guard’s newest fast response cutter during a commissioning ceremony Aug. 6 at Coast Guard Sector Field Office Fort Macon, the Coast Guard Atlantic Area said in a release. 

The Glen Harris will be homeported in Manama, Bahrain, and serve at U.S. Patrol Forces Southwest Asia. Adm. Linda Fagan, the vice commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, presided over the ceremony.  

“Coast Guard Cutter Glen Harris is one of six fast response cutters that will relieve the 110-foot patrol boats which have boldly stood the watch in the 5th Fleet AOR since 2003,” said Fagan. “It is clear the Coast Guard is poised now more than ever to seamlessly integrate with the Navy and Marine Corps team to support the advantage at sea and the Tri-Service Maritime Strategy. We are poised to be a key part of that strategy.” 

The cutter’s namesake is Chief Petty Officer Glen Livingston Harris, a native of North Carolina. He acted as a landing craft coxswain during the landing of Tulagi, which took place Aug. 7-9, 1942, during World War II. Along with three other U.S. Coast Guard coxswains, Harris landed the first U.S. Marines on Tulagi. Over the next three days of conflict, he made repeated trips under heavy enemy fire to deliver ammunition and other supplies to U.S. forces. In September of the same year, he landed against forces at Taivu Point, Guadalcanal Island, thereby materially contributing to the enemy’s eventual defeat. Harris was awarded the Silver Star Medal for gallantry by Adm. Chester Nimitz. 

“The Coast Guard will build 64 fast response cutters, name each for an enlisted hero like Glen Harris, and each dedication uncovers a little-known story, and each story adds volumes to our understanding of our own Coast Guard history,” said Fagan. 

Stacy Howley, Harris’s eldest granddaughter, was present and ship’s sponsor, and Madison King, Harris’s eldest great-granddaughter, served as the long-glass presenter. Several members of the Harris family were in attendance, including his sister Allie Gaskill. 

“My grandfather was one of the most honorable men I have ever known. He was so proud to be an American and a member of the United States Coast Guard. He was our papi, and we absolutely adored him,” Howley said. “He was an extremely humble man and rarely spoke about his time in World War II. But I believe if he were here with us today, he would most certainly say that his actions in the Tulagi Islands, as well as his crewmates that were by his side during the mission, were not heroic at all, but simply a reflection of the Coast Guard’s long tradition of life-saving missions and of putting others before oneself.” 

The Harris crew is already credited with saving lives. While in pre-commissioning status, the crew was first on scene and essential in the response, rescuing a member of the 175-foot lift boat capsizing eight miles south of Port Fourchon, Louisiana, on April 13. The U.S. Coast Guard and multiple good Samaritan vessels responded to the capsized vessel and searched for multiple missing people in the water.  

“Clearly, this crew is already inspired by Glenn Harris and the cutter’s motto Gallantry Abroad,” said Fagan. 

The Glen Harris is the 44th fast response cutter in the U.S. Coast Guard’s fleet and the third of six FRCs planned for service in Manama, Bahrain. Stationing FRCs in Bahrain supports U.S. Patrol Forces Southwest Asia, the Coast Guard’s largest unit outside of the U.S., and its mission to train, organize, equip, support, and deploy combat-ready U.S. Coast Guard forces in support of U.S. Navy 5th Fleet, U.S. Central Command, and national security objectives.  

The Sentinel-class is a key component of the Service’s offshore fleet capable of deploying independently to conduct missions, including port, waterways, coastal security, fishery patrols, search and rescue, and national defense. They are 154 feet in length, 25 feet in beam, and 353 long tons in displacement. They have a top speed of more than 28 knots, a range of 2,500 nautical miles, an endurance of up to five days, and can hold a crew of up to 24. These new cutters are replacing the aging Island-class 110-foot patrol boats in service since 1985.  

The U.S. Coast Guard accepted the Glen Harris on April 22. They will transit to Bahrain later this year with their sister ship, the Emlen Tunnell (WPC 1145), delivered July 1 and due to be commissioned in Philadelphia before departure.  

Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service. Once a ship has been commissioned, its final step toward becoming an active unit of the agency it serves is to report to its homeport and officially load or accept any remaining equipment.