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Singapore Navy is Operating Unmanned Patrol Boats in what may be the Busiest Waterway on Earth

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The USV is equipped with navigation radar, collision detection systems, and a Rafael Toplite electro-optical camera with a laser rangefinder, remote weapon station, and stereovision sensors (Picture source: Singapore MoD)

Below is a Singapore Ministry of Defense News release.

This may be the first routine (as opposed to experimental) operational deployment of Unmanned Surface Vessels in this role.

If Toplite electro-optics sounds familiar, that is the sensor/firecontrol system used with the Coast Guard’s 25mm Mk38 Mod2/3 gun mounts.

The Republic of Singapore Navy’s Unmanned Surface Vessels Progressively Operationalised to Enhance Maritime Security

Singapore is a maritime nation that relies on the sea for survival and economic prosperity. The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) is responsible for ensuring the security of these vital waterways, where more than 1000 vessels traverse daily. The RSN constantly enhances its capabilities to counter the evolving maritime security threats.

Today, the RSN relies on a combination of shore sensors and ships at sea to ensure maritime security of the vital waterways, alongside our national maritime security partners. After a series of rigorous tests, the RSN’s Maritime Security Unmanned Surface Vessels (MARSEC USVs) have begun operational patrols since Jan 2025, operating alongside manned ships such as the RSN’s Littoral Mission Vessels (LMVs) to enhance the security of Singapore’s waters.

Enhance Operational Capabilities – Surveillance, Interdiction and Greater Persistence

The USVs will add another layer of surveillance and operational response to our maritime security system. They conduct patrols, and when required, will investigate and interdict suspicious vessels. Operating alongside other manned vessels, the USVs will enhance the RSN’s ability to monitor and respond to situations at sea.By providing more persistent coverage in the Singapore Strait, the USVs also allow other warships like the LMVs to be deployed for other more complex missions, and at the further ranges from Singapore. The MARSEC USVs also allow the RSN to remotely1 and safely conduct potentially risky missions at sea

Indigenously Designed for Autonomous Operations in the Busy Singapore Strait

Designed and developed in close partnership with the Defence Science & Technology Agency (DSTA) and DSO National Laboratories, the new USV harnesses the latest technologies to enable autonomous operations in congested maritime environment. The USVs are equipped with autonomous navigation systems, which includes an indigenously developed Collision Detection and Collision Avoidance (CDCA) algorithm that enables the vessel to navigate through the busy traffic in the Singapore Strait and cope with the constantly changing environmental conditions at sea.

The CDCA autonomous navigation system integrates the USV’s perception and navigation sensors, as well as collision detection equipment used for typical maritime navigation (such as navigation charts, Maritime Automatic Identification System and Differential Global Positioning System) with an algorithm designed for the RSN’s operations. This rules-based system automates the collision avoidance decision-making process while ensuring that the USVs exhibit avoidance behaviour that complies with the Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea. This means that the USV assesses and responds to maritime traffic situations in a predictable manner, similar to that of a manned vessel.

The USV and its CDCA algorithm was extensively tested through a comprehensive Verification and Validation (V&V) approach, which included simulated-based testing and at-sea trials. This V&V approach had also been benchmarked against industry best practices, together with our global defence partners and maritime experts. Following an extensive development and testing process, the CDCA algorithm successfully completed over 12 million km of simulated distance with zero collisions, equivalent to 26 years of real-world testing. The USVs have also clocked over 1000 hours of real-world autonomous operations, with zero need for human intervention. The RSN will continue progressive experimentation to enhance the MARSEC USVs for a wider range of maritime security operations in Singapore’s congested waters.

Resource Efficient by Design

The vessel can be operated by just a two-man crew2. In addition, the user-centric design of the Unmanned Systems Mission Control allows the operators to quickly plan and execute patrol profiles, track vessels of interest, and remotely warn, query and investigate vessels at sea.

Length 16.9 metres
Beam 5.2 metres
Displacement 30 tonnes
Speed In excess of 25 knots
Endurance In excess of 36 hours
Operators (when operating remotely) 2
Equipment Strobe Light & Siren
Search Light
Long Range Acoustics Device (LRAD)
12.7mm Stabilised Weapon System with Laser Dazzler
Navigation Radar
Global Positioning System

 

“Coast Guard Searching Eastern Pacific for Missing Service Member” –USNI

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US Coast Guard cutter Waesche (WSML-751) and crew transit the San Francisco Bay en route to their Base Alameda, California, home port, Aug. 11, 2024. US Coast Guard Photo

US Naval Institute News Service reports,

The Coast Guard is searching for a missing member of the crew of USCGC Waesche (WMSL-751) off the Pacific coast of Mexico near the border of Guatemala…USCGC Stone (WMSL-758) is also operating in the region.

The missing coastguardsman has not yet been identified.

This Day in Coast Guard History, February 4

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Based on the Coast Guard Historian’s timeline, https://www.history.uscg.mil/research/chronology/
With inspiration from Mike Kelso

February 4

The Paraguay Squadron. Harper’s Weekly, New York, 16/10/1858

1859  The United States signed the “Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation” with Paraguay at Asuncion after the revenue cutter Harriet Lane, as part of a U.S. Navy expedition, forced the opening of the Paraguay and Parana Rivers.

1863  Commissioned officers of the Revenue Cutter Service were to be appointed by the President by and with advice and consent of the Senate.  This act contained the first statutory use of term “Revenue Cutter Service.”  Previous laws referred only to “revenue cutters”.

Woodcut of Ida Lewis, light-house keeper, Women of the century By Phebe Ann Hanaford 1876

1881  Keeper Ida Lewis, the head keeper of the Lime Rock Lighthouse, rescued two soldiers from Fort Adams who had fallen through the ice “at the imminent risk of Mrs. Lewis-Wilson’s life.”  For her heroic actions she was awarded a Gold Lifesaving Medal.  She was officially credited with saving 13 persons during her distinguished career with the U.S. Lighthouse Service “and it is understood that the number was probably much greater.”

1982  Attorney General William Smith declared at a press conference that Operation Tiburon was “the most successful international marijuana interdiction effort to date.”  The operation began in November 1980, and accounted for the seizure of 95 vessels.  It was a combined operation that included elements of the Coast Guard, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Customs Service, and various state and local law enforcement agencies.

M/V New Carissa On February 4, 1999, the M/V New Carissa, a 639-foot bulk freight ship of Panamanian registry, went hard aground in heavy seas about 150 yards off a stretch of remote, undeveloped sandy beach three miles north of Coos Bay, Ore. The ship was intentionally ignited to burn the fuel oil and later broke in two. NOAA photo.

1999  The 639-foot freighter New Carissa ran aground north of Coos Bay, Oregon.  Coast Guard helicopter crews rescued 23 crewmembers, but the vessel remained firmly aground and attempts to refloat her failed.  A unified command made up of Coast Guard and Navy personnel, as well as marine salvors, attempted to prevent a catastrophic oil spill as the ship began breaking apart. The team decided to set the oil on board the New Carissa on fire so it would burn away before being spilled and fouling the shore.  It was the largest “in situ” burn ever tried in U.S. waters and it consumed a significant amount of the oil aboard the New Carissa.  The Coast Guard’s annual report for that year noted: “While some oil did spill out of the vessel, the unified command’s efforts greatly reduced the potential environmental damage to the Oregon coast.”  The ship eventually broke in two and her bow section was towed to sea and sunk by the Navy.

USCGC DILIGENCE returns to Pensacola.

2014  CGC Diligence returned to its homeport of Wilmington, North Carolina, after completing a 49-day patrol in the North Atlantic Ocean in support of Operation Atlantic Venture.  The combined efforts of Diligence and the other Coast Guard assets involved in the operation resulted in nearly 75 vessel inspections that identified numerous violations of federal safety and fisheries regulations.

This Day in Coast Guard History, February 3

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Based on the Coast Guard Historian’s timeline, https://www.history.uscg.mil/research/chronology/
With inspiration from Mike Kelso

February 3

1801  Treaty of peace with France was ratified on this date, thereby ending the “Quasi-War,” in which cutters of the Revenue Marine had rendered valiant service.

1880  Date of a terrific gale on the New Jersey coast.  Six vessels came ashore with 47 persons on board; all but two survived.  Nineteen Life-Saving Service crewmen were awarded Gold Life-Saving Medals during the rescue of the persons aboard the wrecked George Taulane.

Escanaba rescuing survivors from USAT Dorchester. USCG Image.

1943  A U-boat torpedoed the transport USS Dorchester off the coast of Greenland.  Two of her escorts, CGCs Comanche and Escanaba, responded.  The crew of Escanaba used a new rescue technique when pulling survivors from the water.  This “retriever” technique used swimmers clad in wet suits to swim to victims in the water and secure a line to them so they could then be hauled onto the ship.  Although Escanaba saved 133 men (one later died) and Comanche saved 97, over 600 men were lost, including the famous “Four Chaplains” who gave up their lifejackets to those that did not have one and all four went down with the ship.

Cadet Mary Jane East in dress uniform during rifle inspection on the Academy parade grounds. (U.S. Coast Guard Photo) 11/24/2020

1976  The Coast Guard Academy first announced the appointments of 50 cadets to enter with the Class of 1980, including three women: Cathryn Lis of Bristol, Connecticut; Susan Kollmeyer of Groton, Connecticut; & Cynthia Snead of Melbourne, Florida.  The Coast Guard News Release published on February 4, 1976 regarding their announcement noted that: “Of the four largest federal service academies (Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard) the Coast Guard Academy is the first to offer an appointment to a woman.” (USCG News Release No. 7-76; 4 February 1976).

1997  The 660-foot freighter Contship Houston ran aground on a coral reef 12 miles southeast of Key West in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.  The vessel, under Coast Guard supervision, was safely floated off the reef some 144 hours later.

The National Naval Strategy

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Five aircraft carriers and six big deck ampibs at Norfolk Naval Station

I will, for the moment step outside my accustomed role as a retired Coast Guard curmudgeon, and comment on the National Naval Strategy. Please forgive me, but this is the most “bully pulpit” I have. I got to thinking about this when the discussion of the Panama Canal noted that USN carriers cannot use the Canal and would take a very long time to join any naval conflict with China.

There is no longer any tactical or strategic reason that deployment of the US Fleet should be split 50/50 between the Atlantic and Pacific. 

Russia is a fading shadow of the former Soviet Union with a smaller GDP than Canada. Our Atlantic Sea lines of communication are essentially secure. Russia is by no means ready to take on all of NATO, They can barely handle Ukraine.

China on the other hand is increasingly aggressive. Their rapidly growing fleet enjoys a home field advantage in the Western Pacific, particularly while half our fleet is based in the Atlantic.

Most of our ships and all of our aircraft carriers should be based in the Pacific.

In Europe, we have plenty of land bases we can operate aircraft from. Nevertheless, Britain, France, and Italy should be encouraged to coordinate their carrier deployments so that one of them is always immediately available

Big deck amphibious ships like LHAs operating F-35Bs and MH-60R ASW helicopters can fill in for what little carrier aviation we need in the Atlantic and Mediterranean.

In the Pacific we have few permanent air bases close to where conflict is likely. Carrier based aircraft can be the difference between victory and disaster.

The situation is starting to look much like World War II, when virtually all US fast carriers were assigned to the Pacific Fleet

Right now we operate aircraft carriers singly, even in the Western Pacific. Singly an aircraft carrier can barely defend itself against Chinese anti-access systems, much less go on the offensive.

Operating aircraft carriers in pairs with augmented escorts gives them a much better chance of both surviving and going on the offensive. One can play defense while the other prepares a massive strike.

Ten carriers in the Pacific would mean we could have a ready pair in the Western Pacific at all times. They and their larger destroyer squadron could even work up together before deployment.

The current distribution of shipyards capable of doing maintenance on aircraft carriers may suggest basing all US aircraft carriers in the Pacific may be impossible. It might be necessary to open a new shipyard. Vallejo might be an option. A fourth USN Pacific operating base on US soil could be advantageous. If a new shipyard is developed in the Pacific, if it were government owned and operated it could speed emergency repairs, avoiding the delays of contract negotiations.

“Five Key Facts About the SHIPS for America Act” –Podcast

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The “What’s Going On With Shipping” podcast is not normally about the Coast Guard but it is about the Marine Transportation System with which the Coast Guard is intimately intertwined so inevitably the Coast Guard will be mentioned from time to time.

For some reason I didn’t publish this when it came out, but the act, “The Shipbuilding and Harbor Infrastructure for Prosperity and Security (SHIPS) for America Act December 19, 2024,” has yet to be signed into law and it is expected to resurface in the near future.
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This particular edition has a lot to say about the Coast Guard administered mariner credentialing beginning at time 14:45. The contention is that it is much more difficult than it should be.

“USCGC Katmai Bay making a path through the ice for Algonova going to the Soo on Jan 31st, 2025” –Video

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A regular reader wanted to share this video. This was his comment.

I did not know where to put this, so I found one of the stories about the 140′ Ice Breaking Tugs in the Great Lakes

Below is a YouTube link of the USCGC Katmai Bay breaking ice up in Sault Ste. Marie as it was escorting a tanker.

Beautiful close up shots of her after the 20min mark, and you can clearly see her bubbler system working as she slices through the ice.

Just wanted to share this, as these 140’s are a unique asset in the Great Lakes – Very well made ships that still look strong (where’s the 140′ Replacement Program Congress!!).

Are we not allowed to post YouTube Links?? In not, please go search on YouTube for: “USCGC Katmai Bay making a path through the ice for Algonova going to the Soo on Jan 31st, 2025”

So I am passing it along.

What About Panama?

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My previous post included a discussion about the US interests in the Panama Canal and the President’s stated aim of retaking the canal. The discussion suggested that talk of a complete takeover might be a negotiating tactic. In any case it suggests that US forces may make a return to the Canal Zone.

This could be significant for the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard might replicate PATFORSWA with a squadron of Webber Class WPCs that would be very useful in interdicting drug traffic in the Eastern Pacific Transit Zone–PATFORCENTAM.

A Coast Guard base and support center, hosting perhaps a reinforced company of Marines, tasked with doing training in Central America, might be enough to satisfy US concerns about the security of the canal.

A Coast Guard base would also probably be more welcomed by Panama than a DOD base that would look like an occupying force. After all, both the US and Panama share an interest in maritime law enforcement and the security of the canal.