USS Carl M. Levin (DDG 120)

Unmanned systems have become a ubiquitous threat and in many places the Coast Guard is the only military. Consequently it seems the Coast Guard needs a counter to this  threat down to at least the Webber class WPCs. Multipurpose systems that would also be useful against low flying aircraft and surface vessels in addition to UAS would also be useful.

The War Zone reports,

“A new and not immediately recognizable launcher has emerged on the U.S. Navy’s Arleigh Burke class destroyer USS Carl M. Levin. Last year, launchers for Coyote counter-drone interceptors appeared in the same general location on two other Burkes, the USS Bainbridge and the USS Winston S. Churchill. The Navy is currently known to be exploring several other options for integrating lower-cost anti-drone interceptors on various warships to bolster their defenses against this ever-growing threat. The new launcher could also be for deploying other kinds of munitions, drones, and/or decoys.

The Navy has been successfully countering this threat, but has been forced to use very expensive systems to counter very inexpensive, potentially numerous threats. Apparently they have been seeking lower cost counters. As a result some new hardware has been showing up on Navy destroyers.

Hopefully, the Coast Guard is following the progress of these lower cost options with an eye toward incorporating them into the Coast Guard.

The good news for the Coast Guard is that the systems appear to be relatively light and do not require extensive deck penetration.

USS The Sullivans (DDG 68) Lancher believed to be for Coyote

USS Bainbridge (DDG 96) Lancher believed to be for Coyote (VIRIN: 250624-N-OK195-1273)

USS Carl M. Levin (DDG 120) Launcher believed to be for Hellfire/JASM（VIRIN: 260329-M-FP389-1205）

These were believed to be for Coyote or Hellfire/JASM. Hellfire and JASM are pretty well known but Coyote is relatively new so I have selected a couple of short videos to explain what it is.

What does the Coast Guard have now? 

The 57mm Mk110 particularly with ALaMO is probably a good self-defense counter to UAS. Unfortunately, it appears the more sophisticated MAD-FIRES round never became operational.

The Phalanx is certainly capable for self defense against a small number of UAS but it can use all the onboard ammunition in 20 to 30 seconds. Navy is replacing Phalanx on its destroyers with either RAM or SeaRAM Rolling Airframe Missiles. Hopefully SeaRAM will replace Phalanx on NSCs and be added to the OPCs.

The real problem with both of these systems is that they will only be on NSCs and only the 57mm on the OPCs. These large ships will generally be either in port or on patrol far from their home ports. They are not generally available for short duration force protection missions or for response to near term intelligence. We need a counter that can respond rapidly as threats develop.

The WPCs, WPBs, and to a lesser extent buoy tenders are the likely candidates to do force protection, respond to intelligence, or provide a movable cUAS platform, but the 25mm Mk 38s and .50 caliber machine guns are unlikely to successful against UAS and they can cause collateral damage if not used carefully. Better lead computing sights could be provided for the .50 caliber machine guns. Replacing the 25mm guns with 30mm guns capable of firing air burst projectiles would be a major improvement.

I would really like to see Hellfire or APKWS added to WPCs, WPBs, and yes, even buoy tenders.

After 308 days away from its Seattle home port, the 49-year-old U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) and crew returned home, Sept. 23, 2025. Upon completing Operation Deep Freeze (ODF) 2025, Polar Star returned directly to Mare Island Dry Dock in Vallejo, Calif., to complete the final year of a five-year Service Life Extension Program (SLEP). U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Annika Hirschler.

Below is a District NW press release. I believe this is the first time in about six years Polar Star has returned directly to homeport rather than stopping in Vallejo for her five part phased Service Life Extension Program (SLEP).

USCGC Pickering, artist’s rendering, credit Austal.

Went looking for more information about the OPCs. Found nothing new since Pickering’s keel laying, but Austal’s Website now opens with a presentation of “Heritage Class OPC capabilities.” It’s very well done and informative.

It does say that the range is 9,050 nautical miles at 14 knots which is 1,150 miles less than I had seen quoted earlier, but still more than adequate. That probably equates to about 5,800 miles at 18 knots or 3,500 miles at 22 knots.

On the web site, I also found the artist’s renderings above and below. (Click on the photos for the best view.) Looking at this new art work and the web site video, I saw some things I had not noticed before.

There are derricks on the fantail, very much like the ones on some of the NSCs, but of course there is no boats and no launch ramp there. 

There is a break in the superstructure just forward of the stack, apparently a small open area with no superstructure, about where the 378s had an expansion joint in the superstructure.

The after Mk38 gun mount still appears to be a mod3 rather than a mod4, but it looks less crowded with at least a clear field of fire directly abeam and aft. I would feel a lot better if there was a SeaRAM aft and two 30mm Mk38 Mod4s on the platforms where there are .50 calibers located forward of the bridge. (Their electro optic systems could be very useful.) The crews of the after .50 caliber mounts, high on the aft superstructure, are likely to be exposed to a lot of exhaust fumes. They should be relocated to the fantail to provide better close in protection. See this 2016 post for how an OPC might be fitted for wartime.

USCGC Pickering, artist’s rendering, credit Austal.

I did find a December 2025 article that said Pickering was expected to be delivered in late 2027.

Steel was first cut for USCGC Pickering August 29, 2024. Steel was first cut for USCGC Icarus (920) on August 5, 2025, so it is a little less than year behind Pickering.

After the problems encountered with the first OPC contract, awarded to Eastern, there is naturally concern about the second contract. How will Austal perform?

For an indication of how successful and how fast Austal might be, I took a look at the Navajo class T-ATS rescue and salvage ships. The first five Navajo class T-ATS (6-10) are being built by Bollinger. (The first two, 6 &7, seem to have been delivered.) Austal got the contract to build five more ships (11-15). These are the first steel hull ships built by Austal USA, so how is it going?

Austal seems to be performing at least as well as Bollinger. T-ATS 8 and 9 were both laid down before T-ATS 11 and 12, but the Austal ships have been launched and apparently T-ATS-8 and 9 have not. The second Austal ship, T-ATS-12 required only a little over ten months to go from laid down to launch. The second ship in the earlier contract T-ATS-7 required more than four years. (The first ship in the first contract actually took less time, laid down to launch in three years, seven months. Austal’s first ship took only 19 months.)

Austal is expanding.

“A new final assembly building (FA2) that will be used to support the production of the OPC’s, is now under construction. When complete, the building will provide approximately 18,000 square metres of new covered manufacturing space. The building will consist of three bays, two of which are specifically designed to construct the OPC.”

Looks like the Coast Guard made a good choice in selecting Austal. I am even beginning to believe I will live long enough to see an OPC afloat in the Pacific. Theoretically, we could have five Austal built OPCs by the end of 2030.

USCGC Pickering Artist rendering starboard quarter. Credit: Austal

This is old news but I realized I had not passed it along earlier and it does seem to be the most recent news about both USCGC Pickering (919) and USCGC Icarus (920). Looks like we might have two OPCs by the end of 20230.

I know they got this directly from the Coast Guard but we need to drop it, “The OPC program will … provide a capability bridge between the service’s national security cutters, which operate in the open ocean, and the fast response cutters which operate closer to shore.” It suggests that the OPCs will operate in a non-existent region between open ocean and closer to shore. Aside from being sometimes able to keep up with a carrier battle group, OPCs will do all the same missions the NSCs do. Maybe we don’t want to say so, but they really will be high endurance cutters.

Mobile, Ala. – Austal USA hosted a keel laying ceremony today for the first U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Heritage-class Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) to be built at the company’s Mobile, Ala. ship manufacturing facility.  Pickering (WMSM 919) is being built under a contract that includes up to 11 cutters and has a potential value of $3.3 billion. The Coast Guard has executed contract options for six of the 11 cutters to date.

Ship sponsor Dr. Meghan Pickering Seymour authenticated Pickering’s keel by welding her initials onto a keel plate in front of over a hundred distinguished guests including The Honorable Mike Ezell, House of Representatives Mississippi’s 4th District and Chair of House Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, Admiral Kevin Lunday, Commandant (acting) U.S. Coast Guard, as well as Mobile community leaders and members of the Austal USA and USCG shipbuilding team.

Dr. Seymour is the great-great-great-great-great-granddaughter of Colonel Timothy Pickering, the namesake of the first USCGC Cutter Pickering launched in 1798. She was assisted in welding her initials by one of Austal USA’s advanced welders, Mr. Ravi Khamsourin.

The OPC program will recapitalize the Coast Guard’s aging medium endurance cutters and provide a capability bridge between the service’s national security cutters, which operate in the open ocean, and the fast response cutters which operate closer to shore.

“Meeting this important milestone for the Coast Guard’s Offshore Patrol Cutter program is a significant achievement that underscores our commitment to the on-time delivery of the cutters the USCG needs,” stated Austal USA President Michelle Kruger. “Today’s ceremony is representative of the hard work and dedication of our skilled workforce and the strength of the shipbuilding team of Austal USA, the Coast Guard and our suppliers. We are proud to be building these critically important cutters that will help ensure the security of our Nation.”

The 360-foot OPC will provide the majority of the Coast Guard’s offshore presence conducting a variety of missions including law enforcement, drug and migrant interdiction, and search and rescue.  With a range of 10,200 nautical miles at 14 knots and a 60-day endurance period, each OPC will be capable of deploying independently or as part of task groups, serving as a mobile command and control platform for surge operations such as hurricane response, mass migration incidents and other events. The cutters will also support Arctic objectives by helping regulate and protect emerging commerce and energy exploration in Alaska.

Pickering is one of two Coast Guard OPCs, and one of ten total surface vessels, under construction at Austal USA’s Mobile, Ala. ship manufacturing facility.  Austal USA started construction on its second Heritage-class Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC), Icarus (WMSM 920), in August 2025.

Naval News reports,

Damen Shipyards Group has launched the NRP D. João II a Multi-Purpose Vessel (MPV) 10720 for the Portuguese Navy. The vessel entered the water at Damen Shipyards Galati in Romania on April 7.

We have talked about this unique design earlier. Specs for the ship are here.

The flight deck and offset superstructure make it look a bit like an aircraft carrier, but it is much smaller, smaller even than the escort carriers of WWII. The Damen designation 10720 reflects the length 107.6 m (353 ft 0 in) and beam 20 m (65 ft 7 in).

She is slow (15 knots) and has a small crew (48), but I find these ships very interesting because we see efforts to incorporate unmanned systems in new designs, but no one else has gone so far in the design of a new ship.

She has the capacity to take on board containers and even the flight deck could take on additional containers.

I have included some photos found on Facebook.

Source for the photos was https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1392430092926119&set=pcb.1392430426259419.

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Stephanie Jocis, operations officer aboard Legend-class cutter USCGC Midgett (WMSL 757), observes a 23-foot single-outboard skiff vessel, carrying three members of a missing family in the waters of Chuuk State, Federated States of Micronesia, in Midgett’s search light during the early hours of April 6, 2026. The crew of Midgett rescued the family after the vessel went missing on March 30 in the waters of Chuuk State. U.S. Coast Guard missions in the Indo-Pacific focus on issues directly supporting and advancing our regional partners’ efforts to protect fish stocks and ensure the safety of life at sea, ensuring a secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Seaman Lauren Taber)

Below is a news release.

U.S. Coast Guard Seaman Mitchell Schaefer, assigned to Legend-class cutter USCGC Midgett (WMSL 757), prepares to board the 35-foot Long Range Interceptor-II (LRI-II) cutter boat as the embarked cutter swimmer, during the rescue of three members of a missing family from their 23-foot single-outboard skiff vessel in the waters of Chuuk State, Federated States of Micronesia during the early hours of April 6, 2026. The crew of Midgett rescued the family after the vessel went missing on March 30 in the waters of Chuuk State. U.S. Coast Guard missions in the Indo-Pacific focus on issues that directly support and advance our regional partners’ efforts to protect fish stocks and ensure the safety of life at sea, helping to ensure a secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Jennifer Nilson)

Members of Vice Adm. Joe Buzzella’s family put on his new shoulder boards during his promotion to vice admiral during the Pacific Area assumption of command ceremony in Alameda, California, March 26, 2026. As commander of the Coast Guard Pacific Area and Defense Force West, Buzzella oversees all Coast Guard operations across the Pacific theater- an area encompassing more than 74 million square miles. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Austin Wiley)

Below is a news release. When I first read it, I wondered why they had not mentioned the previous PACAREA. That was because he had been Acting Area Commander for more than eight months. Vice Adm. Joe Buzzella has a very impressive background.

His predecessor was Vice Adm. Andrew J. Tiongson who retired July 18, 2025.