Australian Royal Navy personnel stand in formation on a pier as the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane (WMEC-903) and crew prepare to moor at HMAS Cairns, Queensland, Australia, March 7, 2024. The Harriet Lane and crew had a five-day port call in Cairns during its inaugural 2024 Operation Blue Pacific patrol in Oceania. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Ty Robertson)
Below is a Coast Guard News release. The release has some videos including interaction with children in Port Vila, Vanuatu (very cute).
One thing that caught my eye was the use of the plural in this statement, “The Coast Guard plans to use medium endurance cutters (emphasis applied–Chuck) for responsibilities in Hawaiian waters, as well as an increase Coast Guard presence throughout the Indo-Pacific and Oceania.”
Was this just a misstatement by the PAO or does this mean we will see more WMECs in 14th District?
I would also note that Harriet Lane apparently made this patrol without a helicopter. Barbers Point does fly H-65s, but last I heard, they only have three. Did the cutter at least have a Scan Eagle?
Media Advisory: U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane is scheduled to return to home port following inaugural Operation Blue Pacific Patrol in Oceania
Editor’s Note: Media should RSVP by Monday, April 8 by 4 p.m. to Petty Officer 2nd Class Ryan Fisher at ryan.m.fisher@uscg.mil
Imagery of Harriet Lane’s patrol can be found here: Operation Blue Pacific
Who: U.S. Coast Guard Rear Adm. Michael Day, commander U.S. Coast Guard Fourteenth District, and Cmdr. Nicole Tesoniero, commanding officer U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane (WMEC 903).
What: U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane and crew are expected to return to home port after their inaugural Operation Blue Pacific patrol in Oceania. Media are invited to watch Harriet Lane and crew moor at Pearl Harbor and families be reunited after being away for more than 70 days. Media will be able to hear remarks from Day and Tesoniero regarding Operation Blue Pacific and the increased Coast Guard presence in Oceania.
Where: Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, 1000 North Rd, Honolulu, Hawaii, 96860
When: Tuesday, April 9 at 10 a.m.
Harriet Lane and crew partnered alongside allies and several Pacific Island countries from January to April 2024. Among those countries were Samoa, Fiji, Vanuatu, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Nauru and Marshall Islands. The focus was on advising and sharing best practices, along with bolstering our partners’ capabilities to promote and model good maritime governance in the region.
Harriet Lane and crew expanded U.S. Coast Guard presence in Oceania alongside Pacific Island countries exercising bilateral maritime law enforcement agreements with shiprider provisions to strengthen maritime domain awareness and support efforts to combat illegal fishing activities with partners with whom we have existing relationships.
The Harriet Lane is U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area’s newest Indo-Pacific support cutter and spent more than 15 months in a Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) in Baltimore, Maryland, to prepare for the transition in missions and operations.
The Coast Guard plans to use medium endurance cutters for responsibilities in Hawaiian waters, as well as an increase Coast Guard presence throughout the Indo-Pacific and Oceania. The ship is especially suited for longer-range six-to-eight week joint operational and training patrols in the Pacific, taking pressure off shorter range Hawaii-based cutters more suited to service closer to home port.
Commissioned in 1984, Harriet Lane is a 270-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, to support Coast Guard missions in the Pacific region. The service’s medium endurance cutter fleet supports a variety of Coast Guard missions including search and rescue, law enforcement, maritime defense, and protection of the marine environment.
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