The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Forward (WMEC 911) steams near an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean, Aug. 22, 2023. Forward deployed in support of Op Nanook, an annual Canadian-led exercise that offers an opportunity to work with partners to advance shared maritime objectives. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Mikaela McGee)

The US Naval Institute’s Fleet and Marine Tracker again reports three Navy ships are operating under 4th Fleet. This has been the case since the end of the UNITAS exercise. We will have to wait to see if this higher level of activity becomes a new norm.

As for Coast Guard activity, they note PATFORSWA in the Mid East, USCGC Healy (WAGB-20) in the Beaufort Sea, USCGC Forward (WMEC-911) participation in Operation Nanook, and, “Legend-class National Security Cutter USCGC Munro (WMSL-755) is in the South China Sea and is conducting joint training with the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA).”

There is good coverage of Coast Guard out of area operations. USNI is publishing what information they get from the Coast Guard, but apparently the Coast Guard does not provide anything comparable to the statistical information the Navy provides (as in the example below), so there is no information about routine Coast Guard operational tempo.

Ships Underway

Unfortunately, the Coast Guard frequently lacks visibility (particularly the larger cutters and fixed wing aircraft) because despite being an important component of the “National Fleet,” it is not included in the “Total Battle Force.” It could be argued that the battle force number is not very instructive because it includes everything from aircraft carriers to fleet tugs and research ships, but people, including people in Congress take the number seriously. They talk about it a lot.

The investment in high quality platforms that make the Coast Guard so effective in its peacetime missions is only fully justified by the fact that the Coast Guard serves as a naval auxiliary in wartime.

We cannot allow people to forget that the Coast Guard has wartime roles that justify additional investment in capabilities that might not be otherwise justified.

A revision to the statistical presentation, like the example above, that included Coast Guard major units, would demonstrate that Coast Guard units are underway at a relatively high rate. It would show that the government is getting what it paid for.