
DAHLGREN, Va. (Nov. 6, 2004) Coast Guard Cutter Shamal (WPC-13) patrols the Potomac River near the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren, VA. On Sept. 29, 2004, USS SHAMAL was transferred to the U.S. Coast Guard in Little Creek, VA and placed in Commission Special status. After a two-month dockside availability at Integrated Support Command Portsmouth, SHAMAL will make itstransit to her new homeport of Pascagoula, MS., where it will be officially commissioned on December 6, 2004. SHAMAL’s planned major missions will be alien migrant and drug interdiction operations within the D7 and D8 AORs. MS. USCG photo by Joseph P. Cirone,USCGAUX
Below is a NAVCENT news release. More a Navy story than a Coast Guard one, but a class of ships the Coast Guard not only worked closely with, but also operated. Their departure puts an even greater load on the six Patrol Forces SW Asia Webber class cutters.
U.S. Navy Decommissions Last Patrol Craft Stationed in Bahrain
By U.S. Naval Forces Central Command Public Affairs | March 28, 2023
1 of 5
|
MANAMA, Bahrain (March 28, 2023) U.S. 5th Fleet leaders and Sailors salute during the U.S. national anthem at a decommissioning ceremony in Bahrain for USS Chinook (PC 9), March 28, 2023. The event marked the end of the patrol craft’s 28 years of U.S. naval service. (Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jacob Vernier)
Photo Details | | | Download | | |
MANAMA, Bahrain (March 28, 2023) Lt. Cmdr. David Hartmann, commanding officer of USS Chinook (PC 9), delivers remarks at a decommissioning ceremony in Bahrain for both Chinook and USS Monsoon (PC 4), March 28, 2023. The event marked the end of nearly three decades of U.S. naval service for the patrol craft. (Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jacob Vernier)
Photo Details | | | Download | | |
MANAMA, Bahrain (March 28, 2023) Lt. Cmdr. Dre Johnson, commanding officer for USS Monsoon (PC 4), delivers remarks at a decommissioning ceremony in Bahrain for both Monsoon and USS Chinook (PC 9), March 28, 2023. The event marked the end of nearly three decades of U.S. naval service for the patrol craft. (Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jacob Vernier)
Photo Details | | | Download | | |
MANAMA, Bahrain (March 28, 2023) Capt. Anthony Webber, commander of U.S. 5th Fleet’s Task Force 55, delivers remarks at a decommissioning ceremony in Bahrain for both USS Monsoon (PC 4) and USS Chinook (PC 9), March 28, 2023. The event marked the end of nearly three decades of U.S. naval service for the patrol craft. (Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jacob Vernier)
Photo Details | | | Download | | |
MANAMA, Bahrain (March 28, 2023) Sailors man the rails aboard patrol coastal ship USS Chinook (PC 9) during a decommissioning ceremony in Bahrain, March 28, 2023. The event marked the end of the patrol craft’s 28 years of U.S. naval service. (Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jacob Vernier)
Photo Details | | | Download | | |
MANAMA, Bahrain —
The U.S. Navy decommissioned the last two Cyclone-class patrol coastal ships stationed at Naval Support Activity Bahrain, March 28, during a pierside ceremony attended by U.S. 5th Fleet officials.
Leaders and crewmembers of USS Monsoon (PC 4) and USS Chinook (PC 9) marked the end of nearly three decades of U.S. naval service.
“I’m honored to be a part of the legacy on this waterfront,” said Lt. Cmdr. Dre Johnson, during the ceremony. “PC Sailors are a unique bunch, and only they can understand the amount of work they’ve done and the pride they have in what they’ve accomplished.”
Johnson is Monsoon’s last commanding officer. The U.S. Navy initially commissioned the ship in 1994 and then recommissioned it in 2008 after Monsoon served four years in the U.S. Coast Guard. Chinook was commissioned in 1995.
“With 28 years of crew covering multiple generations, each one was dedicated to the mission, adapting to rapidly changing mission sets, and working together as a team to accomplish whatever obstacle that came their way,” said Lt. Cmdr. David Hartmann, Chinook’s commanding officer.
Monsoon and Chinook are the last of a group of 10 ships designed for shallow-water operations that were stationed in Bahrain. The Middle East region includes 5,000 miles of coastline from the northern Arabian Gulf, around the Arabian Peninsula, through the Red Sea and Suez Canal.
Last year, the U.S. Navy decommissioned and transferred five patrol craft to the Royal Bahrain Naval Force: former ships USS Tempest (PC 2), USS Typhoon (PC 5), USS Squall (PC 7), USS Firebolt (PC 10) and USS Whirlwind (PC 11). Additionally, the U.S. Navy decommissioned and transferred former ships USS Hurricane (PC 3), USS Sirocco (PC 6) and USS Thunderbolt (PC 12) to the Egyptian Navy last week during a formal ceremony in Alexandria, Egypt.
Monsoon and Chinook are slated for transfer to the Philippine Navy. Officials from the Philippines attended the ceremony.
“I’m proud of our crews for reaching this milestone and representing our nation and Navy with utmost pride and professionalism,” said Capt. Anthony Webber, commander of Task Force 55, which oversees operations for U.S. 5th Fleet’s surface forces. “I’m also proud that we are turning over great ships to our Philippine partners.”
Bahrain, Egypt and the Philippines are members of the largest multinational naval partnership in the world called Combined Maritime Forces (CMF). Led by the United States, forces from the organization’s 38 nations operate across approximately 3.2 million square miles of international water space in the Middle East. The partnership ensures maritime security and stability in some of the world’s most important shipping lanes.
Monsoon was commissioned on Broadway Pier in San Diego when I was on Resolute at REFTRA in ’94, we were moored on the NSC pier – best spot for going to REFTRA with KC BBQ and Seaport Village right there, beat being at 32nd.
bet it beats reftra in gitmo.
Def beats gitmo 🙂