Coast Guard’s 270-foot medium endurance cutter Bear underway in Africa. (Ensign Connor Brown, U.S. Coast Guard)
Commandant Notice below announces this year’s Hopley Yeaton Cutter Excellence and Superior Cutter Awards. The stories show the resilience and adaptability of our cutter crews.
R 150718 DEC 20 |
The Drive reports a gasoline tanker moored in the Saudi port of Jeddah has been attacked by a remote controlled motor boat packed with explosives. Presumably this attack was done by Yemeni Houthi Rebels. Jeddah is about 707 km or about 382 nautical miles from the Yemeni border, about half way up the Red Sea, on the Eastern side.
The resulting fire was extinguished and there were no personnel casualties.
“Cooling procedures and inerting of cargo space have been initiated to avoid reignition of fire,” it continued. “Ship stability is being assessed before proceeding with any further operations.”
I have to wonder, did they detect the in coming threat? Did they attempt to engage?
I would also note this is another example of how hard it it to seriously damage a large ship, particularly a tanker.
More on Houthi naval activities here, here, here, and here.
Topographic map in English of the Red Sea, UTM projection (WGS84 datum). Author: Eric Gaba – Wikimedia Commons user: Sting
USS John S. McCain
The National Transportation Safety Board has published the results of their marine accident investigations completed in 2019. Included are USS McCain’s collision and the Duck Boat sinking.
Its long. You might want to start by skipping to page 86 for the lessons learned.
Thanks to Lee for bringing this to my attention.
ONE Apus as it arrived into view in Kobe, Japan, December 8, 2020. Photo: Twitter @mrnkA4srnrA
gCaptain reports on the largest container loss ever experienced by a Box Ship, 1816 containers. Obviously a pollution potential and, while they float, a hazard to navigation.
The following is from MyCG. The only amount listed is $55/month but then it references a tiered system, apparently with five levels.
There was a bit of a surprise in the announcement.
“The studies found that the 270-foot medium endurance cutters had more days away from homeport than any other class of cutter for the period reviewed.”
Apparently the Bear class is still pulling its weight.
By Shana Brouder, MyCG Writer
Dec. 8, 2020 —
Coast Guard members assigned to cutters received a pay increase in October 2020. For the first time in 20 years, sea pay increased by $55 per month for afloat assignments. In addition to this pay increase, the Office of Cutter Forces updated the tiered sea pay table to reflect the nature of duty aboard cutters.
“It took a full court press to make this happen,” said Lt. Cmdr. Keith Blevins, the Afloat Workforce Recruitment and Retention Manager in the Office of Cutter Forces. “We used a multitude of sources including a RAND study, a junior afloat officer survey…, and a follow-on analysis in partnership with a cohort at Boise State University…to get the quantitative data needed to make this change an organizational priority.”
This strategic, multi-year effort analyzed many factors that make up life aboard cutters to include: time underway, maintenance requirements, living quarters arrangements, and nature of missions.
Prior to this change, the sea pay budget was approximately $22 million annually for 8,900 members who are assigned to cutters. This increase provides an additional $6 million, which is more than a 25% increase to the sea duty pay account.
“We understand that an extra $55 dollars per month certainly isn’t life-changing, but the significant budgetary commitment it is a testament to how the service values its cuttermen,” said Lt. Cmdr. Paul Ledbetter with the Office of Cutter Forces.
The Coast Guard sea pay model differs from other sea-going military service branches. “Other services have a rate for sea pay that increases with sea time, but it does not vary between platforms or mission areas,” explained Blevins. “Our tiered approach takes into consideration a variety of factors designed to reward those who go to sea and incentivize them to come back.”
The analyses on sea-going missions provided insight into these three factors. The studies found that the 270-foot medium endurance cutters had more days away from homeport than any other class of cutter for the period reviewed. Further, most 270-foot cutters are over 30 years old. While the work may be similar to the National Security Cutters (NSC), the living quarters and maintenance requirements are vastly different on the 270-foot cutters.
As a result, the 270-foot medium endurance cutters were assigned to a tier five on the sea pay table which is the highest tier. This change was made to ensure those members working aboard the 270-foot medium endurance cutters are appropriately compensated.
During patrols in the eastern pacific, cutters are conducting law enforcement missions, drug seizures, and migrant interdiction on a variety of vessels. The increase in sea pay is important because all members assigned to cutters receive the increase. The updated considerations ensure that all members aboard ships receive additional compensation.
“Cutter Forces will continue to advocate for future increases to adjust for inflation,” said Blevins. “However, we are pleased to see this $55 increase and hope the members feel their time at sea is valued.”
The caption above is two years out of date. Below is a news release from D8.
PHOTOS: Coast Guard holds 52nd annual White Alder ceremony
Editors’ Note: Click on images to download high-resolution version. NEW ORLEANS – Members of Marine Safety Unit Baton Rouge held a memorial and wreath laying ceremony Monday for the 52nd anniversary of the sinking of the Coast Guard Cutter White Alder at USS Kidd Veterans Museum in Baton Rouge. The White Alder and the Motor Vessel Helena, a 455-foot Taiwanese flagged freighter, collided in the Mississippi River near Bayou Goula Bend Dec. 7, 1968. The cutter sank in 75 feet of water. Three of its 20-person crew were rescued, while the other 17 perished. The remaining crew members are entombed in the sunken cutter at the bottom of the Mississippi to this day. White Alder was homeported in New Orleans from 1947 until 1968. The cutter’s primary responsibility was to tend river aids to navigation and to conduct search and rescue and law enforcement duties, when required. A special aids to navigation structure was built in honor of the crew and marks the location of the sunken vessel near White Castle, Louisiana. December 7 every year, Coast Guardsmen and surviving family members gather at the site in remembrance of those who lost their lives. |
Below is a post by a friend I have never actually met, Przemyslaw Krajewski. We worked on a CIMSEC project in 2013. As you might have guest he is Polish and in fact lives in Poland. He is an avid skier. We had a short discussion about MARSUR after I published this very short post about its existence. I told him I felt we needed to know more about the system and asked if he could help. He very quickly came back with the post below.
Actually I see a need for international exchange of Maritime Domain Awareness data in several parts of the world. Europe is well along in developing the protocols and mechanisms for such a system. It is badly needed in West Africa, in Central and South America. the South China Sea, and probably numerous other locations. If the US Coast Guard could join this effort, an international standard might result.
Przemyslaw apologized for his English, but I think he did a fine job.
This post intention is to elaborate a bit more on what MARSUR is and how it works. Maritime Surveillance project is initiative of European Defense Agency, established in 2006 and aiming at
“Technical solution that allows dialog between European maritime information systems. Containing 19 Member States plus Norway, the project aims to improve the common “Recognized Maritime Picture” by facilitating exchange of operational maritime information and services such as ship positions, tracks, identification data, chat or images.” [1]
Beyond member states actually participate also EDA itself and EU Satellite Centre (EU SATCEN).
Twenty members sounds scary and indeed it intuitively shows level of complexity. Just to give broader picture or background. Europe consists of 46 states plus 2 de facto independent but as eastern border of geographical Europe are a bit fuzzy, some sources counts 50 countries. 26 of them are members of European Union (as 27th by some is counted in Asia) and 27 are NATO members…but these are not the same countries.
If we quote Carl von Clausewitz the most famous statement that war is the continuation of politics by other means, so how EU could have one army without common political goal?
As a consequence most of military cooperation in European Union focuses on procurement efficiency. Obvious obstacles to overcome are differing political objectives, technical standards, organizational solutions within national security establishemnts, legal issues individual to participating states, semantics and many others. All of this is nicely and elegantly hidden in two words „facilitating exchange”. On the other hand there is comparatively little controversies around the project as overwhelming need to act upon reliable information is common for all states and institution involved.
Using more technical language MARSUR is decentralized network linking national systems via VPN using common semantics applied in software called Marsure Exchange System or MEXS. MEXS represents local national hub fed with information voluntarily shared by governments or more specifically by governmental agencies. In theory it could fuse data from military and civilian institutions/agencies and make it public or limit to specific user community like naval, border control, fisheries and so on. As infromation provides ranges in sensitivity from public to secret, both distribution and level of commitment could differ from country to country. Common mechanism would be multilateral or bilateral agreement on government level.
System entered demonstration phase in October 2011 followed by MARSUR Live Phase using prototype software. While Basic Level obligatory for all participant relied on manual exchange of information, Advanced Level is automated and set in 2016 as a goal to pursue as fast as possible.
MARSUR doesn’t exist in vacuum and represent military layer for broader initiative called EU Common Information Sharing Environment (CISE) integrating member states systems related to customs, fisheries control, marine pollution, border control, law enforcement, maritime safety & security and finally defense. MEXS 3.0 which represent the latest upgrade aims exactly at linking as much as possible of security and defense related systems to general framework of CISE. In parallel exist also geographically focused and similar systems – SUCBAS [3] and SUCFIS, effect of cooperation of Baltic Sea states (except Russia) and between Finland and Sweden.
MARSUR begins to show some practical results. In May 2017 was used in support of Italian Navy and EUNAVFOR operation Sophia in Mediterranean.[2] System has been installed both in Rome headquarter as well as a mobile component afloat. This year it was used in live demonstration of Ocean 2020 consortium of european technology businesses nad navies conducted in Mediterranean Sea with next exercise planned in Baltic Sea [4].
[1] https://www.eda.europa.eu/what-we-do/activities/activities-search/maritime-surveillance-(marsur)
[4] https://ocean2020.eu/sea-trials/
Other useful links:
The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Myrtle Hazard (WPC 1139) rescued two fishermen aboard a 21-foot fishing vessel 128-miles west of Tinian, Dec. 1, 2020. The crew of the Myrtle Hazard successfully transferred the two fishermen from their boat, verified their health, and gave them food and water. (U.S. Coast Guard photo courtesy of the Navy/Released)
Guam’s newly arrived Webber class WPCs are already making an impact.
“Coast Guard rescues 2 fishermen off Northern Mariana Islands”
Just passing this along for any who might be interested or who know someone who might be:
Coast Guard college student pre-commissioning program offers opportunities for future leaders
Editors’ Note: Click on images to download a high-resolution version. In today’s modern world, it’s not enough to just have a college degree; every year, the number of formally educated workers is growing. Students all over the country are looking for ways to beef up their resumes and set themselves apart from their peers. The college student pre-commissioning program (CSPI) combines military work experience with education opportunities provided through the United States Coast Guard for students attending college. The CSPI scholarship is designed for college juniors and seniors who demonstrate superior academic and leadership capabilities. Students who are accepted into the program are enlisted into the U.S. Coast Guard, complete basic training during the summer, and receive full funding to include payment of tuition, fees, books, a full-time Coast Guard salary as an E-3, housing allowance, and medical benefits. “I discovered the CSPI program by researching the different military opportunities that pay for college,” said Heather Slaninka, a former marine science technician in the Coast Guard and a senior at the University of Hawaii enrolled in the CSPI program. “I was drawn to the Coast Guard over any other branch because it is the only branch that deals with environmental response, a field I have always wanted to work in since I was a little girl.” To take part in the program, students must be enrolled in a full-time bachelor’s degree program at a minority serving accredited college or university; a historically Black college or university, a Hispanic serving institute, a tribal college or university. Locally, the University of Hawaii at Manoa, Hilo, and West Oahu have CSPI opportunities. While in school, officer trainees report to their local recruiting office where they complete a minimum of 16 hours per month of Coast Guard duty. After finishing their junior year of school, CSPI students attend a three-week leadership training course in New London, Connecticut, followed by a full-time summer as active duty training at a new unit. “The CSPI Program is beneficial to students’ academic and professional careers,” said Chief Petty Officer Alvan Welch, Recruiting Office Honolulu Recruiter in Charge. “In particular, it allows students to excel academically by not worrying about college’s financial burden and guarantees a job upon graduation.” After graduating college, officer trainees attend officer candidate school, a 17-week long course in New London. Upon completion, graduates commission as a Coast Guard ensign, and an initial assignment in one of the officer operational specialties: aviation, afloat, prevention or response. “I’m most looking forward to earning my commission and returning to the fleet as an ensign,” said Jesse Sceppe, a former operations specialist in the Coast Guard and officer trainee currently enrolled in the CSPI program at the University of Hawaii. “Hopefully I’ll be conducting intelligence or prevention missions throughout the Coast Guard. Both active duty Coast Guard members and civilians are able to apply for the program if they meet the requirements. The next CSPI application deadline is Dec. 28, 2020, and applicants are encouraged to meet with their recruiter two months prior to the application due date. To learn more about the CSPI program and other Coast Guard opportunities, contact your local Coast Guard recruiting office or visit gocoastguard.com. |
The Eagle and the Alidade, by LCDR Ian Starr, USCG, A bald eagle catches its breath on the bridge wing of the USCGC Alex Haley (WMEC-39) during operations off the Aleutian Islands on 19 March 2020.
The US Naval Institute reports the results of their annual photo contest. This year, Coast Guard photographers and/or subjects took first, second, and third place and were also well represented among the “Honorable Mentions.”
Chuck Hill's CG Blog 