CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The Coast Guard held a heritage recognition ceremony, Thursday, in Cape Canaveral to honor the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Confidence (WMEC 619) and recognize its 58 years of service.

The ceremony was presided over by Cmdr. Thomas Martin, commanding officer of Confidence, and retired Rear Adm. James Underwood, 15th commanding officer of Confidence, was a guest speaker at the ceremony, which served to celebrate the Confidence’s contributions to the service and Nation in the presence of cutter leadership, current and former crew members, families, and friends.

The event also marked the ship’s exit from active-duty service for an indeterminate time, placing it in commission, special status. The 210-foot Confidence operated as a Coast Guard Atlantic Area command asset, based in Portsmouth, Virginia, and was most recently homeported in Cape Canaveral.

In 1965, the Coast Guard began construction on Confidence at the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore, Maryland and it was commissioned in 1966. The cutter is the fifth of 16 vessels built in the Reliance-class of medium endurance cutters operating in the Coast Guard’s fleet. These cutters were designed for search and rescue as well as law enforcement missions such as counterdrug and migrant interdiction.

The cutter spent its first 17 years assigned to the Coast Guard Seventeenth District and was homeported in Kodiak, Alaska. While patrolling the Bering Sea, northern Pacific Ocean, and Aleutian Islands, Confidence carried out missions to counter domestic and foreign vessels found in violation of treaties and engaging in illegal fishing practices.

Confidence’s crew fought a fire on the abandoned tugboat Pacific Titan in May of 1967, later towing it to Adak, Alaska. On July 17, 1967, Confidence seized the Japanese fishing vessel Tenyo Maru 3 for fishing within U.S. territorial waters off Alaska.

On March 1, 1968, Confidence rescued 3 fishermen from an oarless small boat adrift approximately six miles off the coast of Cape Creville, Alaska after they were spotted by a cargo ship. The fishermen had previously abandoned their fishing vessel Chirikof after it capsized off Kodiak Island. Days later, the crew was too weak from hypothermia to climb up the cargo ship’s ladder. Confidence arrived on scene to pull the men aboard from their skiff.

Throughout the 1970s, Confidence’s crews seized international vessels originating from the Soviet Union, South Korea, Panama, and other nations for violating U.S. fishery laws.

In the Spring of 1983, Confidence relocated to the Coast Guard’s Thirteenth District with a new homeport of Port Angeles, Washington, where the cutter carried out several drug interdictions at sea.

On July 23, 1984, the cutter interdicted sailboat Haja 150 miles off the coast of California with 30 pounds of marijuana on board. Confidence later seized motor vessel Eagle 1 with 506 pounds of cocaine stashed in a secret onboard compartment on Jan. 19, 1986, while underway in the Juan de Fuca Strait. It was the largest cocaine seizure on the U.S. West Coast at the time.

After completing a nearly two-year Major Maintenance Availability at the Coast Guard Yard in June of 1988 to upgrade onboard systems and conduct structural renovations, Confidence relocated to its present duty station of Cape Canaveral. Once it began operating in the Coast Guard Seventh District, the cutter played a large role in migrant interdiction in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea.

During the 1990’s, Confidence participated in immigration operations by interdicting Cuban and Haitian migrants leaving their countries in unseaworthy and overcrowded vessels. While participating in Operation Able Vigil, the crew of Confidence rescued 1,123 Cuban migrants within four weeks. In early 1997, Confidence also interdicted 428 Haitian migrants during Operation Able Manner.

In 2005, Confidence was one of the first government vessels to respond after Hurricane Katrina made landfall along the U.S. Gulf Coast.

In January 2007, Confidence underwent the Mission Effectiveness Project, a second upgrade at the Coast Guard Yard to overhaul mechanical systems and receive a new davit system to launch the over-the-horizon cutter boat, prolonging the cutter’s lifespan further.

Recently, Confidence offloaded more than 12,100 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated $160 million at Coast Guard Base Miami Beach, Sept. 19, 2023, following multiple at-sea drug interdictions by various Coast Guard units to include Confidence.

During the cutter’s last patrol, Confidence’s crew interdicted two unsafe migrant ventures in the Windward Passage and oversaw the humanitarian treatment and processing of 65 migrants from various countries of origin. The crew also assisted a damaged, U.S.-flagged vessel low on fuel off the coast of Haiti.

“To the crews of Confidence, past and present, thank you all for the work you put forth in maintaining and operating this cutter for the past 58 years,” said Capt. Brian Anderson, chief of operations at Coast Guard Atlantic Area. “Confidence has served this nation proudly as a multi-mission platform for almost six decades, but without her crew she is just a shell.  The crew breathes life into the steel, making it a Coast Guard cutter.”

The Confidence now transitions into an inactive shipyard status as part of the Coast Guard’s greater “AY24 Force Alignment Initiative,” a program to temporarily adjust operations to better reflect the approximate 10% shortage of enlisted members while the Service reassigns personnel and assets to ensure the essential mission readiness demanded by the American public.

This initiative will enable the Coast Guard to meet growing demands for the service’s unique capabilities and authorities during the workforce recruitment and retention challenges facing all U.S. military service branches.

“The Coast Guard cannot maintain the same level of operations with our current shortfall – we cannot do the same with less,” said Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Heath Jones in a joint statement. “Conducting our missions is often inherently dangerous, and doing so without enough crew puts our members and the American public at increased risk.”

Once back at the Coast Guard Yard, Confidence’s current crew will transfer to a different cutter, a step taken to help ensure the Coast Guard’s ability to prioritize lifesaving missions, national security, and protection of the Maritime Transportation System with no degradation to these critical services.

“It has been an honor for the crew to carry on Confidence’s 58-year legacy of outstanding service to the nation,” said Cmdr. Thomas Martin, commanding officer of Confidence. “It is a tribute to the hard work and dedication of all the crews that came before us that this cutter has been able to successfully execute the mission for almost six decades. ”

Confidence is a 210-foot, Reliance-class medium endurance cutter with a crew of 77. Since commissioning in 1966, Confidence has executed counterdrug and migrant interdiction operations, enforced federal fishery laws, and conducted search and rescue missions in support of Coast Guard operations throughout the Western Hemisphere.

More information about the U.S. Coast Guard’s AY24 Force Alignment Initiative can be found here.

For information on how to join the U.S. Coast Guard, visit GoCoastGuard.com to learn about active duty, reserve, officer and enlisted opportunities. Information on how to apply to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy can be found here.

Military units are intended for collaboration. The concept is also true for various branches of federal services. Customs & Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) are two partners who mutually benefit from collaboration. Specifically, at the Joint Program Office in San Angelo, Texas, where USCG and CBP MQ-9 pilots, sensor operators, and radar operators support various functions within the maritime and land border domains.

On Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, the Joint Program Office received a call from Sector Corpus Christi to help support a SAR mission to find an overdue vessel with four souls aboard. Sector Corpus Christi called in support from the Joint Program Office in San Angelo following an uneventful search of the area by Coast Guard helicopters, aircraft and vessels. Lt. Cmdr. Luke Grant, an MQ-9 Pilot attached to the Joint Program Office, explained how the call to support the SAR case came in. “We’ve been working with Sector Corpus Christi on how they could use us and activate us in case they need us. It just happened that later that week they had a report of an overdue vessel. We already had a plane that was getting ready to launch, so we changed their mission set to go to that area and search for the overdue boaters.”

Historically, the Coast Guard has supported similar missions with helicopter and aircraft crews as well as various maritime assets to locate missing vessels. However, with recent capability advancements the Coast Guard is leveraging new ways to support legacy missions. With flight times of up to 24 hours, CBP’s MQ-9 offers a wide array of advantages over traditional manned assets. Lt. Cmdr. Grant says the platform has worked well in his experience. “It’s pretty good at finding the type of targets that we’re typically looking for in the Coast Guard. We’ve had good luck with finding go fast vessels.”

An additional advantage was Sector Corpus Christi’s ability to view the video feed from the MQ-9 during the SAR case. “They were pretty excited about being able to see what we were seeing and that definitely helps us reduce the number of communications with sector because they see exactly what’s happening.”

The impact the Joint Programs Office can make is literally the difference between a family member making it home or not. Petty Officer 1st Class David Garman, an avionics electrical technician (AET), explained his perspective after supporting this case. “I’m trained to operate this radar and assist in getting the vessel the assistance it required. It wasn’t until later when driving home at the end of the workday where I was like, I helped save lives today, I assisted in what I joined the Coast Guard to do 15 years ago. So, while it’s not the same as physically pulling them from a bad situation at night in a helicopter hovering 35-feet above the water, I was still elated and proud of the job the crew and I did to get them home safe.”

Lt. Cmdr. Grant was also pleased he was able to help bring a citizen to safety. “I know how important it is to people to get their family members back home, so there’s definitely a lot of job satisfaction when we can do a case like this and bring people back home.”

The mission and responsibility at the Joint Program Office at San Angelo is growing and the team couldn’t be more excited to share the possibility to recruit other aviators to their small community. Garman had a glowing review when asked about his current assignment. “This mission, skillset, and future opportunities available as an MQ-9 operator are well worth the time. Our mission is different than what most fellow AET’s experience in their time at normal Coast Guard air stations.”

For more information on the rescue or to watch the feed from the MQ-9 read here.

Resources:

• Video of the rescue

COOS BAY, Ore. – The Coast Guard decommissioned the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Orcas (WPB1327) during a ceremony, Tuesday.

Rear Adm. Charles Fosse, the commander of the Thirteenth Coast Guard District, presided over the ceremony honoring the 35 years of service Orcas and its crews provided to the nation.

Commissioned on April 14, 1989, Orcas was the twenty-seventh Island-Class cutter to join the fleet.

Orcas has been stationed in Coos Bay, Oregon, since 1989 and is the sixth Coast Guard cutter to be stationed in Coos Bay since 1935.

The Orcas was a multi-mission platform that conducted operations to support search and rescue response, marine environmental protection, and national defense.

“From training allied nation maritime forces, conducting the largest-ever cocaine seizure in the history of the Pacific Northwest, and saving countless lives and hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of property on the Pacific Ocean – Orcas has done it all,” said Lt. Brendan O’Farrell, the commanding officer of the Orcas. “This ship, one of the last of its kind, is an old American-made workhorse built to endure the harsh Pacific waves. I’m extremely proud and blessed to have served with the finest crew in the fleet.”

SANTA RITA, Guam — Aboard the USCGC Frederick Hatch (WPC 1143), Lt. j.g. Mary Sims sets an example of excellence on the vast waters of the Pacific Ocean. She was honored in March 2024 with the prestigious inaugural Sector Guam Officer Excellence Award for the second half of 2023 for her unwavering devotion to duty and outstanding leadership.

While she’s been doing incredible work for nearly two years, Sims serves as the executive officer and a boarding officer. She played an essential part in groundbreaking maritime operations, including the first-ever execution of enhanced maritime bilateral agreements with the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and the Republic of Palau. She also set an outstanding example as a boarding officer during 16 boardings of foreign-flagged fishing vessels, illuminating the issue of illegal fishing and capturing data on potential violations documented and turned over to the partner nation or regional fisheries management organization for further action. Her unwavering commitment to maritime law and steadfast support of good maritime governance represent the highest standards of professionalism and integrity.

While serving as acting commanding officer, she showcased outstanding skills and tactical sense by spearheading the cutter effort in two complex nuclear missile submarine escorts with U.S. Navy Submarine Squadron 15. Further demonstrating her diplomatic skills, Sims arranged a meeting between the Frederick Hatch crew and the BAP Unión crew, a Peruvian Navy tall ship voyaging around the globe and calling on Guam.

But her efforts go well beyond geopolitical concerns and tactical strategy. During the M/V Mama Loling towing operation, she showed resilience and fortitude in the face of hardship by expertly navigating the Frederick Hatch in eight-foot seas and hazardous weather to save five mariners and their damaged 39-foot research vessel in the Northern Mariana Islands threatened by an oncoming tropical cyclone. Her bravery and sound reasoning saved lives inspired the crew and honored the highest ideals of the U.S. Coast Guard.

Furthermore, Sims is an admirable contributor to community engagement and public service. During the cutter’s historic visit to Tacloban, Philippines, she led the organization of 14 community engagement activities over four days. This visit helped to build connections and improve diplomatic contacts with the local community and Philippine Coast Guard colleagues. On many occasions, Sims shared her experience with women and girls across the Pacific, which embodies the spirit of the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) initiatives, as her presence not only showcases the importance of gender inclusivity within security operations but also serves as a potent symbol of empowerment, inspiring community resilience and fostering a more inclusive approach to regional peace and security efforts.

A native of Alabama, she has several siblings, including her sister Emma, who is also in the U.S. Coast Guard, assigned to USCGC Lawrence Lawson (WPC 1120) as the executive officer, out of Cape May, Jew Jersey. Sims is an avid runner, plays on a thriving local rugby team, and follows her faith.

In her upcoming assignment at U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area LANT-35, operations department maritime security enforcement, Sims will continue to excel and significantly contribute to the Coast Guard’s mission. Her transfer signifies the trust and confidence in her abilities to tackle new challenges and uphold the highest service standards as she concludes her tour here in Guam; her legacy of dedication, leadership, and commitment to excellence will continue to inspire her colleagues and leave an ever-lasting mark on the U.S. Coast Guard’s legacy! Bravo Zulu, Lt. j.g. Sims, and best wishes for continued success in your future endeavors.

-USCG-

U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam
The U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam team focuses on maritime safety, security, and stewardship in Oceania. With a primary presence in Guam and Saipan and over 300 members across Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the team maintains a strong U.S. presence in the Micronesia sub-region and adjacent areas, closely tied to local communities.

About USCGC Frederick Hatch (WPC 1143)
The Frederick Hatch is the 43rd 154-foot Sentinel-class fast response cutter named for a surfman and lighthouse keeper who was a two-time Gold Life Saving Medal recipient. The Service commissioned the ship along with its sister ships, Myrtle Hazard (WPC 1139) and Oliver Henry (WPC 1140), in Guam in July 2021.