It has been only four days since we last looked at this document, but Congressional Research Service’s Ronald O’Rourke has come out with another revision. (You can always find the latest edition in full here.) The latest revision added Senate action on the DHS Appropriations Act (H.R. 7669/S. XXXX). Unlike the House Appropriations Committee, the Senate Appropriations Committee would fund two rather than four Webber class FRCs (Providing $160M rather than $260M) and seems to close the door on the possibility of a twelfth Bertholf class NSC.

Table 2 (page 23) provides a Summary of Appropriations Action on FY2021 Procurement Funding Request. Figures are in millions of dollars, rounded to nearest tenth. HAC=House Appropriations Committee. SAC=Senate Appropriations Committee. No final action has been take as of publication. The table is reproduced below.

______________Request__HAC__SAC___Final
NSC program         31            31        31
OPC program      546           546      546
FRC program        20           260      160
TOTAL                 597           837      737

We are now eleven weeks into FY2021. The continuing resolution ran out 11 November. Hopefully we will see this move to final action soon.

I have reproduced the section regarding Senate Appropriations Committee action below. (From pages 23/24, there are some minor format changes.)

Senate

The Senate Appropriations Committee, in the explanatory statement for S. XXXX that the committee released on November 10, 2020, recommended the funding levels shown in the SAC column of Table 2.

The explanatory statement states (emphasis added):

Full-Funding Policy.—The Committee again directs an exception to the administration’s current acquisition policy that requires the Coast Guard to attain the total acquisition cost for a vessel, including long lead time materials [LLTM], production costs, and postproduction costs, before a production contract can be awarded. This policy has the potential to make shipbuilding less efficient, to force delayed obligation of production funds, and to require post-production funds far in advance of when they will be used. The Department should position itself to acquire vessels in the most efficient manner within the guidelines of strict governance measures. The Committee expects the administration to adopt a similar policy for the acquisition of the Offshore Patrol Cutter [OPC] and heavy polar icebreaker.

Domestic Content.—To the maximum extent practicable, the Coast Guard is directed to utilize components that are manufactured in the United States when contracting for new vessels. Such components include: auxiliary equipment, such as pumps for shipboard services; propulsion equipment, including engines, reduction gears, and propellers; shipboard cranes; and spreaders for shipboard cranes. (Pages 71-72)

The explanatory statement also states:

National Security Cutter [NSC].—The Committee is disappointed that the Coast Guard has not officially conveyed to the Committee a determination on whether a twelfth NSC is required; based on the lack of direct communication and the inclusion of a proposed rescission of funds provided in fiscal year 2020 in the budget request, the Committee infers that an additional vessel is not required at this time. While funding a twelfth NSC would undoubtedly allow the Coast Guard to better conduct its mission operations and likely result in the prevention of thousands of tons of contraband from reaching the United States, the Committee is not positioned to recommend funding for another vessel when faced with budgetary constraints and additional requests for vessel classes well short of the Coast Guard’s program of record. The Committee directs that the remainder of funding provided above the request in 2020 for this program shall support the NSC fleet.

Offshore Patrol Cutter [OPC].—The Committee notes that the Coast Guard has declared the OPC as its highest recapitalization priority and provides the requested amount of $546,000,000 to continue construction, procurement of LLTM, and related program management costs. While the Committee supports OPC procurements, the Committee remains concerned about costs for the program and continues the requirement directing the Coast Guard to brief the Committee within 1 week prior to taking any procurement actions impacting estimated costs for the OPC program.

Fast Response Cutter [FRC] Program.—In accordance with the Coast Guard’s  recapitalization plan, the Committee has supported the replacement of legacy 110-foot
Island Class patrol boats with FRCs that will operate similarly in the coastal zone. The
Committee is aware of the need for four additional FRCs to sustain the Coast Guard’s
critical mission in support of the Department of Defense in Patrol Forces Southwest Asia; however, the budget request did not include any funding for new FRCs. The Committee recommends an additional $140,000,000 for two additional FRCs and directs the Coast Guard to negotiate favorable pricing for each vessel. (Pages 72-73)

PHOTO BY PA1 KURT FREDRICKSON

The US Naval Institute Blog has a post by a Seaman LaVigne USCG suggesting steps to improve the fitness of Aviation Survival Technician candidates.

Perhaps some of the information he suggests for this very limited population might also help other coasties achieve an maintain better fitness.

Just passing this along for anyone who might be interested. 

Another UAV has entered the market. (more here) This system is likely to serve on the numerous French OPVs being built that have aviation facilities designed to support UAVs rather than helicopters like the POM, though the indication was that their UAV would be in the 700 KG class. 

It appears to be very direct competition for the very successful Schiebel Camcopter S-100, being very close in specifications.

The Coast Guard Cutter Bluebell sits moored on the Willamette River waterfront in Portland, Ore., June 4, 2015. The Bluebell, which celebrated her 70th anniversary this year, is one of many ships participating in the 100th year of the Portland Rose Festival. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Chief Petty Officer David Mosley.)

The Congressional Research Service has issued a two page look at the Coast Guard’s Waterways Commerce Cutter (WCC) program.

The program is expected to replace 35 small tenders, including 18 WLRs, 13, WLICs, and four WLIs, with the first vessel completed in 2025 and all delivered by 2030.

I am passing this along from the MyCG web site. 

Coast Guard Foundation’s Tribute to the United States Coast Guard from Our Nation’s Capital

Oct. 27, 2020 —

Sometimes you need to back away from the details to take a look at the larger picture. Sept. 17, the Commandant released the “Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing Strategic Outlook”. There have been a number of reports that indicate the Coast Guard is taking this seriously and in fact started working the plan even before it was published.

On Sept. 3 we had a report of USCGC Bertolf’s joint patrol with the Ecuadorian navy off Galapagos Islands, August 25-29.

Sept. 22 we had a report that USCGC Waesche had had a fire on Sept. 20, while on deployment to the Western Pacific .

Sept. 23, we got this report of cooperative fisheries enforcement with the Royal Bahamian Defence Forces, Coast Guard, RBDF seize more than 12,000 lbs. of illegal catch off Bahamas

Oct.7 we got a report that USCGC Douglas Munro had just completed a two month patrol in the North Pacific, not an ALPAT, Operation North Pacific Guard 2020.

Oct. 8 we got this report indicating that the Coast Guard would continue to do capacity building in Africa. Navy, Coast Guard Keep Up Operations in Africa.

And most recently, Oct. 24, we learned that not only would we be “strategically homeporting significantly enhanced Fast Response Cutters … in the western Pacific,” but that basing cutters in America Samoa is being considered. “US to base Coast Guard ships in western Pacific to tackle China”

Taken together, these seem to indicate that the Coast Guard is taking on Illegal, Unregulated, and Unreported (IUU) fishing, particularly Chinese IUU fishing, which is the most egregious, not only in the US EEZ, but also internationally in a cooperative manner.

The line from Jaws comes to mind, I think we are going to need a bigger Coast Guard.

CNN reports,

“British armed forces forcibly boarded and regained control of an oil tanker in the English Channel on Sunday evening following reports of a suspected hijacking, according to the UK defense ministry.”

As we learn more I will add in comments.

U.S. Coast Guard Ensign Morgan Garrett, 24 years old, from Weddington, N.C., died in an Oct. 23, 2020, crash of a Navy T-6B Texan II trainer aircraft in Foley, Ala. US Navy photo.

US Naval Institute News services has identified the two killed in the crash of a U.S. Navy T-6B Texan II training aircraft. They were U.S. Navy Lt. Rhiannon Ross, a 30-year-old instructor pilot, and U.S. Coast Guard Ensign Morgan Garrett, a 24-year-old student pilot.

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air . . .

Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or ever eagle flew —
And, while with silent, lifting mind I’ve trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.