The commentator here, Salvatore Mercogliano, has a regular podcast. Usually he talks about the merchant marine, but he has chosen to take a look at the history of the Offshore Patrol Cutter program and the two shipyards that have been contracted to build them. His views are well balanced and informative. It is a worthwhile 15 minutes.
Thanks to Lee for bringing this to my attention.
The Congressional Research Service has again updated their “Report to Congress on Coast Guard Cutter Procurement”. (This link will always take you to the most recent edition of the report.) My last post on this evolving document was in reference to an October, 19, 2021 update. I have reproduced the one page summary in full below.
This is not new information, but I thought it worth repeating:
Notional Construction Schedule and Resulting Ages of Ships Being Replaced
The posting for the RFP for the Stage 2 industry studies included an attached notional timeline for building the 25 OPCs. Under the timeline, OPCs 1 through 7 (i.e., OPCs 1-4, to be built by ESG, plus OPCs 5-7, which are the first three OPCs to be built by the winner of the Stage 2 competition) are to be built at a rate of one per year, with OPC-1 completing construction in FY2022 and OPC-7 completing construction in FY2028. The remaining 18 OPCs (i.e., OPCs 8 through 25) are to be built at a rate of two per year, with OPC-8 completing construction in FY2029 and OPC-25 completing construction in FY2038.
Using these dates—which are generally 10 months to about two years later than they would have been under the Coast Guard’s previous (i.e., pre-October 11, 2019) timeline for the OPC program37—the Coast Guard’s 14 Reliance-class 210-foot medium-endurance cutters would be replaced when they would be (if still in service) about 54 to 67 years old, and the Coast Guard’s 13 Famous-class 270-foot medium-endurance cutters would be replaced when they would be (if still in service) about 42 to 52 years old.
It would be gratifying is OPC#1 is in fact delivered in FY2022, which is less than ten weeks away.
The Congressional request for a new Fleet Mix Study still has not been answered. (pp 17-19) This may be tied up in DHS. I would note that the latest Navy Force Structure Study apparently bypassed DOD.
“The requirement in the bill was designed to have the report bypass the Office of the Secretary of Defense and go directly to Congress, several legislative sources have told USNI News. OSD took a more active role in crafting the Navy’s force structure under former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and senior leadership has continued to be involved in the force structure process.”
I would think that DHS should be allowed to comment on the next USCG Force Structure Study they should not be allowed to withhold it from Congress. The Fleet Mix Study was intended to report how effective in meeting the Coast Guard’s stutory missions various force levels would be. It does not advocate for any particular force level. A new Fleet Mix would probably be the best information available to make rational decisions about force levels.
Despite two additional FRCs (#65 & 66) being added and funded in the FY2022 budget. It seems uncertain if they will actually be built. (p. 20)
The question of building a twelth NSC is apparently still an open question, though I find it hard to believe that will happen, but building another would get us more new ships faster and it could be justified by reducing the OPC fleet from 25 to 24. (p. 20)
The impact of inflation is discussed on p. 21.
May 2022 Coast Guard Testimony
At a May 12, 2022, hearing before the Homeland Security subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee on the Coast Guard’s proposed FY2023 budget, Coast Guard Commandant Karl Schultz testified (emphasis added)
“I appreciate the significant investments for surface, aviation, and shore maintenance included in the FY 2022 Appropriation; however, the desired impacts of these investments are greatly diminished by the historic inflation we experience today. In recent years, the Coast Guard has been hamstrung by increasing maintenance backlogs resulting in hundreds of lost patrol days for cutters and thousands of lost flight hours for aircraft. This means that cutters, boats, and aircraft are unable to deploy for planned operations, our people are unable to complete their mission, and our partners are left without full Coast Guard support. Rising inflation and supply chain issues continue to increase costs throughout the life cycle for our assets.
“For example, in the past year the price for steel to build our ships has increased 48%, fuel costs have increased 20% with an additional adjustment on the horizon, and the price for select critical parts to maintain our Medium Endurance Cutters have increased 37%. These increasing costs for operating and sustaining our fleet negatively impact our ability to perform our missions and our combined efforts to restore service readiness.”
Action on Appropriations FY2023 Procurement Funding Request
Since my October 19, 2022 commentary, the administration’s FY2023 budget has been published, and the House Appropriations Committee (HAC) has acted on the FY2023 DHS Appropriations Act (H.R. 8257) making a start on what will be the FY2023 appropriation (pp 25/26). Here is how we stand for each of the three cutter programs, figures in millions of dollars, rounded to nearest tenth.
National Security Cutter (NSC).—The Committee provides $147,000,000, which is $87,000,000 above the request, for the NSC program. This funding will support postdelivery activities to missionize and operationalize NSCs 10 and 11.
Fast Response Cutter (FRC).—The recommendation provides $131,000,000 for the FRC program, an increase of $115,000,000 above the request for FRCs funded in prior years to cover class-wide activities, including economic price adjustments related to the rise in material and labor costs and for post-delivery missionization costs.
So neither bump in funding, for the NSC or FRC, would provide addtional hulls.
Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2022 (H.R. 6865)
The report also notes House Action on the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2022. This is what it says
House
Section 104(a) and (b) of H.R. 6865 as passed by the House on March 29, 2022, states SEC. 104.
AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS FOR ACQUISITION OF ADDITIONAL CUTTERS.
(a) In General.—Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated under—
(1) section 4902(2)(A)(i) of title 14, United States Code, as amended by section 101 of this title, for fiscal year 2022;
(A) $300,000,000 shall be authorized for the acquisition of a twelfth National Security Cutter; and
(B) $210,000,000 shall be authorized for the acquisition of 3 Fast Response Cutters; and
(2) section 4902(2)(A)(ii) of title 14, United States Code, as amended by section 101 of this title, for fiscal year 2023;
(A) $300,000,000 shall be authorized for the acquisition of a twelfth National Security Cutter; and
(B) $210,000,000 shall be authorized for the acquisition of 3 Fast Response Cutters.
(b) Treatment Of Acquired Cutter.—Any cutter acquired using amounts authorized under subsection (a) shall be in addition to the National Security Cutters and Fast Response Cutters approved under the existing acquisition baseline in the program of record for the National Security Cutter and Fast Response Cutter.
Section 212 states
SEC. 212. STUDY ON LAYDOWN OF COAST GUARD CUTTERS.
Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Transportation, shall conduct a study on the laydown of Coast Guard Fast Response Cutters to assess Coast Guard mission readiness and to identify areas of need for asset coverage.
I have a hard time understanding why a Authorization Bill even exists particularly in regard to specifying amounts of money, since it provides not money. Nominally it provides guidance on spending, but the real guidance is in the appropriation.
This passed the House on March 29, but the Department of Homeland Security FY2022 appropriation, which included the Coast Guard budget, had been signed into law two weeks earlier, on March 15, 2022.
Anyway, the “Summary” is quoted below and it provides a good picture of where we are in the recapitalization process.
Summary
The Coast Guard’s program of record (POR), which dates to 2004, calls for procuring 8 National Security Cutters (NSCs), 25 Offshore Patrol Cutters (OPCs), and 64 Fast Response Cutters (FRCs) as replacements for 90 aging Coast Guard high-endurance cutters, medium-endurance cutters, and patrol craft. The total of 64 FRCs includes 58 for domestic use and 6 for use by the Coast Guard in the Persian Gulf.
NSCs are the Coast Guard’s largest and most capable general-purpose cutters; they are replacing the Coast Guard’s 12 Hamilton-class high-endurance cutters. NSCs have an estimated average procurement cost of about $670 million per ship. Congress has fully funded the procurement of 11 NSCs—three more than the 8 in the Coast Guard’s POR—including the 10th and 11th in FY2018, which (like the 9th NSC) were not requested by the Coast Guard. In FY2020, Congress provided $100.5 million for procurement of long lead time materials (LLTM) for a 12th NSC, so as to preserve the option of procuring a 12th NSC while the Coast Guard evaluates its future needs. The Coast Guard’s proposed FY2023 budget requests $60.0 million in procurement funding for the NSC program. This request does not include further funding for a 12th NSC; it does include funding for closing out NSC procurement activities and transitioning to sustainment of in-service NSCs. Nine NSCs have entered service; the ninth was commissioned into service on March 19, 2021. The 10th is scheduled for delivery in 2023.
OPCs are to be less expensive and in some respects less capable than NSCs; they are intended to replace the Coast Guard’s 29 aged medium-endurance cutters. Coast Guard officials describe the OPC program and the Polar Security Cutter (PSC) program as the service’s highest acquisition priorities. (The PSC program is covered in another CRS report.) The Coast Guard’s FY2020 budget submission estimated the total acquisition cost of the 25 ships at $10.270 billion, or an average of about $411 million per ship. The first OPC was funded in FY2018. The first four OPCs are being built by Eastern Shipbuilding Group (ESG) of Panama City, FL. The Coast Guard held a full and open competition for a new contract to build the next 11 OPCs (numbers 5 through 15). On June 30, 2022, the Coast Guard announced that it had awarded a fixed-price incentive (firm target) contract to Austal USA of Mobile, AL, to produce up to 11 offshore patrol cutters (OPCs). The initial award is valued at $208.3 million and supports detail design and procurement of LLTM for the fifth OPC, with options for production of up to 11 OPCs in total. The contract has a potential value of up to $3.33 billion if all options are exercised. The Coast Guard’s proposed FY2023 budget requests $650.0 million in procurement funding for the 5th OPC, LLTM for the 6th, and other program costs.
FRCs are considerably smaller and less expensive than OPCs; they are intended to replace the Coast Guard’s 49 aging Island-class patrol boats. The Coast Guard’s FY2020 budget submission estimated the total acquisition cost of the 58 cutters intended for domestic use at $3.748.1 billion, or an average of about $65 million per cutter. A total of 64 FRCs were funded through FY2021. The Coast Guard’s proposed FY2022 budget did not request funding for the procurement of additional FRCs. In acting on the Coast Guard’s proposed FY2022 budget, Congress added $130 million in FRC procurement funding for the construction of up to two additional FRCs and associated class-wide activities. If built, the two additional FRCs would be the 65th and 66th FRCs. As of July 12, 2022, 48 FRCs have been commissioned into service. The Coast Guard’s proposed FY2023 budget requests $16.0 million in procurement funding for the FRC program; this request does not include funding for any additional FRCs.
The Coast Guard Cutter Eagle moored behind the USS Constitution July 22, 2011. The Eagle’s crew participated in several events in Boston during the port call. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Rob Simpson.
Below is a First District news release. Had to share this, if only for the photo above that accompanied it.
| Media Advisory |
U.S. Coast Guard 1st District Northeast |
Coast Guard Cutter Eagle to offer news media ride-along, public tours, during visit to Boston
Due to limited space, media interested in riding along during the Eagle’s inbound transit to Boston must RSVP D1PublicAffairs@uscg.mil no later than Thursday, July 28, at 4 p.m. Government-issued identification and media credentials are required. Media are asked to arrive at the Coast Guard Base Boston no later than 6:30 a.m. Friday. Due to space constraints, media pooling may be required.
WHO: Coast Guard Capt. Jessica Rozzi-Ochs, Eagle’s commanding officer, and first woman to command the ship, and Navy Cmdr. Billie Farrell, USS Constitution’s command officer, also the first woman to command the ship
WHAT: Media is invited to ride aboard Eagle as it arrives in Boston
WHEN: Friday, July 29, at 6:30 a.m.
WHERE: Coast Guard Base Boston, 427 Commercial Street, Boston, MA 02109
BOSTON — The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Eagle, “America’s Tall Ship,” is scheduled to arrive in Boston, Friday.
News media members are invited to ride into port aboard the Eagle. Crewmembers will be available for interviews underway and once the cutter moors.
The Eagle will moor in Charlestown, behind the USS Constitution July 29-Aug.1, and will be open for free public tours.
Tours will be available the following date and times:
Note: Tours for military and first responders begin one hour prior to posted tour times on Saturday and Sunday.
At 295 feet in length, Eagle is the largest tall ship flying the stars and stripes and the only active square-rigger in United States government service. Eagle has served as a classroom at sea to future Coast Guard officers since 1946, offering an at-sea leadership and professional development experience as part of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy curriculum. This summer, Coast Guard Academy Cadets completed a transatlantic voyage and experienced port calls in Azores, Iceland, and Bermuda.
Eagle is a three-masted barque with more than 22,300 square feet of sail and 6 miles of rigging. The cutter was constructed in 1936 by the Blohm and Voss Shipyard in Hamburg, Germany. Originally commissioned as the Horst Wessel by the German navy, Eagle was a war reparation for the United States following World War II.
Additional information about the Eagle can be found here. The Eagle’s design dimensions can be found here.
For more information about Eagle, including port cities, tour schedules, and current events, follow the “United States Coast Guard Barque EAGLE” Facebook page or on Instagram @barqueeagle. All U.S. Coast Guard imagery is in the public domain and is encouraged to be shared widely.
-USCG-
Location of American Somoa in the Pacific (Graphic via Wikimedia Commons)
CIMSEC has a post advocating stationing Webber class WPCs in America Samoa.
We did talk about this earlier and I came to the same conclusion, but this article talks about something I did not.
President Biden is considering expanding the Pacific Remote Islands Marine Monument (PRIMNM). A major concern of the initiative (besides that it harshly impedes indigenous fishers), is it may allow foreign illegal fishing to take stronger hold inside U.S. Exclusive Economic Zones. Hawai’i Council member Matt Ramsey warns, “we need to consider that the whole monument boundary is surrounded by more than 3,000 foreign vessels that fish in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean.” If President Biden expands the PRIMNM, the region would require a significant increase in maritime security forces to ensure illegal fishing does not imperil U.S. resources and render the PRIMNM impotent.
The Pacific Remote Islands Marinte Monument was enlarged in 2014, making it six times larger than it had been previously. It is already as large as the entire US Atlantic Coast EEZ (considering the Gulf Coast separate). I noted at the time, that it would require additional forces to police the area, as a reserve without enforcement will only keep the honest people out.
The current threat of IUU fishing in the Western Pacific was not a significant consideration when the Program of Record (POR) was determined in 2004. That suggest that we may need more than the planned 64 Fast Response Cutters (58 in the original POR plus six more for PATFORSWA).
Three Webber class in Pago Pago, American Samoa is a good start, but it may not be enough. If we don’t add any more Bertolf class National Security Cutters in the Western Pacific, it seems likely we may need to add OPCs to mix.
“Famous-class medium endurance cutter USCGC Mohawk (WMEC 913) arrived in Dakar, Senegal for a scheduled port visit, July 12, 2022…During the visit, Mohawk leadership will meet with U.S. embassy leaders to continue building on the United States’ strong maritime partnership with Senegal…This port visit also marks the first stop in Africa for Mohawk during their maritime patrol in the Gulf of Guinea. Mohawk is forward-deployed to the U.S. Naval Forces Africa (NAVAF) area of operations, while employed by U.S. Sixth Fleet.”
Mohawk had escorted the last pair of Webber class bound for PATFORSWA, USCGC John Scheuerman (WPC 1146), and USCGC Clarence Sutphin Jr. (WPC 1147), across the Atlantic. Before Mohawk goes home or the WPCs get to Bahrain, they are doing some relationship and capacity building. Earlier Mohawk had stopped in Lisbon. Meanwhile the Webber class cutters made one of probably several portcalls enroute Bahrain in Algeria.
Leonardo 76/62 Sovraponte (Single Deck) naval gun system fitted on the helicopter hangar of the Italian Navy PPA type vessel.
Knowing that a ship will last decades into an uncertain future, when you consider how a ship should be armed.
A recent report by Naval News, Dutch LPD Karel Doorman To Receive 76mm Gun And RAM Upgrade, brought to my attention a new mount that, may allow two mounts to some degree meet all these potentially contradictory requirements.
The 76mm/62 gun may be the most produced medium caliber gun since the 5″/38 of WWII fame, with perhaps more users than any naval gun in history. The Coast Guard still has this gun, the 76mm Mk75, mounted on the Bear class WMECs. Since then, a different, much improved “Super Rapid” (SR) mount has been developed specifically for anti-ship cruise missile (ASCM) defense. In fact, it is designed to deal with the simultaneous arrival of multiple ASCMs.
The Italian Navy considers the SR to be an effective anti-missile weapon and new ships are being built with this weapon in place of the twin “Fast 40” used on earlier ships in that role. OTO-Melara estimates that, combined with the Dardo FCS, the SR can begin engaging attacking missiles at about 6,600 yards (6,000 m), with the first rounds arriving on target at 6,000 yards (5,500 m). With these ranges, a single gun can deal with up to four subsonic sea-skimmer missiles, arriving simultaneously on courses 90 degrees apart, before any reaches 1,100 yards (1,000 m).
The Deck Mounting Advantage
Topside space on many ships is at a premium. Sensors, ECM, comms, and weapons compete for space. A gun normally enjoys pride of place on the bow, but it is more difficult to site weapons on the stern, particularly if they require ammunition handling space under the weapon.
This new mount should retain the capabilities of the SR mount (aside from fewer ready service rounds–76, almost as many as we had on the Mk75, but with the advantage of dual selectable feed) and adds the advantage that it does not require an ammunition handling space below the mount. A clever repackaging of the ubiquitous former Oto-Melara 76 mm gun looks looks like it could be the answer to a number of difficult weapon siting questions This means that it can be mounted in areas where the previous SR mount could not have been mounted, such as on the roof of helicopter hangars or on the fantail where steering gear is directly below (like where the Phalanx was located on the FRAMed 378s).
Frequently, the top of the hangar is to best location, but the space under the roof is already taken up. Weapons like the 25 mm Mk38, the 20 mm Phalanx, or the SeaRAM missle systems can usually find space aft, frequently on top of the hangar, because they don’t require deck penetration, but they do not have the versatility of the 76mm.
That might not matter much on more powerful warships that have a range of different weapons to address different threats, but for ships with a limited number of weapons, it can be critical.
The Alternatives
Looking at the US Navy weapons that are typically mounted on top of the hangar because they don’t require below deck ammunition handling space:
The Mk38 even in the anticipated Mod4 version is a short range (4400 yard max/2200 yard effective) weapon with only minimal anti-air capability and suitable for engaging only small surface targets.
The 20mm Phalanx is capable against ASCMs but it was designed to stop “leakers,” as a last ditch back up to more capable systems. It was never intended as a complete, stand alone ASCM defense systtem. If multiple ASCMs arrive simultaneously, it could probably successfully engage only one, or at most two. It does have limited short range counter drone and counter-swarm capability, but its projectile is a non explosive high velocity .50 caliber, so its effect on any but the smallest surface vessel is likely to be very limited and only then at very short range (1625 yard effective). Quoting from the link in this paragraph,
In recent years, the Vulcan 20 mm gun that is the heart of this weapon has increasingly been seen as not being effective enough against modern missile threats. However, the British Royal Navy did select Phalanx for their new Daring class Type 45 destroyers.
Phalanx is somewhat notorious for having maintenance problems, with the Navy’s Material Readiness Database for fiscal years 1997 through 1999 noting that Phalanx Block 1B (all mods) had an availability rate of between 72 and 81% for this time period.
The RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM and SeaRAM) is probably the best short range counter to anti-ship cruise missile (ASCM) in the USN inventory. I can understand why the Dutch chose it for the Karel Doorman upgrade. It has been modified to incorporate an anti-Helicopter, Aircraft, and Surface (“HAS”) capability. Range is reportedly 10,000 meters, about 11,000 yards, and it has a decent sized warhead, 11.3 kg (24.9 lb). That is far more than the range of the either the Mk38 or the Phalanx.
Each of these is designed for a particular threat. RAM is by far the most versatile but even it cannot match range and capabilities of the 76mm with its numerous ammunition alternatives.
Ammunition
Sophisticated ammunition makes the 76mm particularly versatile.
Programable Fuze: Like the 57mm Mk110, the 76mm can use a programable fuze, the 3A-Plus programmable multi-role fuze. It is described as having several modes including a time mode for air burst and a number of proximity modes: gated proximity, anti-missile proximity, conventional air defence proximity and anti-surface proximity. The fuzing includes a digital signal processor which rejects ground/sea clutter and so is claimed to be capable of detecting a missile flying as low as two meters above sea level while being able to recognise a target at a 10-meter stand-off.
Guided munitions are being developed for the 57mm Mk 110 (ALaMO and MAD-FIRES). These technologies could also be applied to the larger 76mm round, but a capability that appears similar to MAD-FIRES has been available with the 76mm for about a decade, with the advantage that it includes a proximity fuze. Additionally, reportedly, extended range rounds that may be guided against both fixed and moving targets are or soon will be available for the 76mm.
DART (Driven Ammunition Reduced Time of Flight):
European Defense Review On-Line reports,
“…the Super Rapido is offered in the Strales (or Davide as identified by Italian Navy) configuration based on the DART (Driven Ammunition with Reduced Time of Flight) guided ammunition and a Ka-band guidance radar antenna required to generate the ammunition guidance beam installed on the gun mount. The sub-caliber DART projectiles demonstrated an effective range up to 8 km (in comparison with a 4.5 km requirement) and a 1,200 m/s initial velocity allowing to cover 5 km in 5 seconds. These performances together with the high maneuverability of the DART round allowed the system to demonstrate its effectiveness against present and future ASCM targets, at a fraction of the cost of a missile engagement but with equivalent performances, Leonardo claims.”
Quoting from Wikipedia:
The DART projectile…is a guided gun projectile with radio controls and a proximity fuze for low level engagement (up to 2 meters over the sea). DART is fired at 1,200 m/s (3,900 ft/s), can reach 5 km range in only 5 seconds, and can perform up to 40G manoeuvre.The DART projectile is made of two parts: the forward is free to rotate and has two small canard wings for flight control. The aft part has the 2.5 kg warhead (with tungsten cubes and the 3A millimetric wave new fuze), six fixed wings and the radio receivers.
The guidance system is Command Line of Sight (CLOS). It uses a TX antenna installed on gun. The radio-command for them is provided on a broadcast data-link (Ka Band).
The first lot of DART 76mm guided ammunition, produced by OTO Melara, was successfully tested at the end of March, 2014. The firing trials were conducted on board one of the Italian Navy’s ships equipped with Strales 76mm SR and Selex NA25 fire control system. The first firing trials of the DART ammunition bought by Colombia in 2012 were successfully conducted in the Caribbean Sea on 29 August from the 76/62 Strales inner-layer defence system fitted to its modernised FS 1500 Padilla-class frigates.
Above is a video of the DART validation tests, first against a low level, but essentially stationary targert to test the fuzing against a target in sea clutter and then against a moving target, in this case a Banshee target drone. I believe the antennae seen attached above the gun barrel were part of the test rig, as these are not normally present on the gun mounts.
Vulcano
I see the possibility that there may be a confrontation between Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV) in the South China Sea or East China Sea in which a China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel fires warning shots and directs the OPV of another Asian nation (I will call AN) to depart a disputed area. The AN OPV stands it ground and refuses to leave. The CCG OPV having a longer ranged weapon (up to 76mm currently), remains outside the range of the AN OPV and fires a few rounds for effect in an attempt to drive the AN OPV away. Whether the CCG OPV scores any hits or not, the AN OPV now has three choice, none good, stay and perhaps take additional damage, run away, or attempt to close the CCG OPV to get in range for a fight they will probably lose.
In 2020 the Chinese government made very public statements that they had authorized the CCG to use deadly force.
In 2021 Russia claimed to have fired warning shots in driving a Royal Navy Destroyer from waters of Crimea. The claim was untrue, but for many audiances, the claim probably went unchallenged.
Range matters, in the scenario above, if the AN OPV had a weapon of equal or greater range than that of the CCG OPV, the CCG OPV would probably never have fired to hit, because it could not have done so with impunitity. Reportedly, 76mm Volcano rounds that will outrange conventional rounds from Chinese and Russia guns, not just 76mm but also 100mm (3.9″) and 130mm (5.1″) and reach any target within the visual and radar horizon (to over 40,000 meters)
The Vulcano family will actually include at least three different types of 11 lbs. (5 kg), extended range, sub-caliber discarding sabot projectiles.
Leonardo advertises Vulcano rounds for the 76mm as if they are already available. But also advises it is still under development. Apparently development is expected to be complete this year.
The more recent development is the VULCANO 76 ammunition system. Basically, it is a scaled down version of the 127–155 mm Vulcano family of extended-range projectiles developed by Oto Melara; guided by Inertial Navigation System and Global Positioning Systems, it is capable of hitting targets twice the distance of normal 76 mm gun ammunition. GPS-IMU guidance and IR or SAL (Semi-Active Laser-Chuck) Terminal sensor. The Vulcano 76 GLR ammunition is expected to complete the development, test and qualification process by late 2022 with the delivery of production rounds to customers from 2023–24 onwards.
The Unguided Balistic Extended Range (BER) Vulcano round may already be operational. It would certainly be the easiest to develop. This high velocity sub-caliber discarding sabot round is usable for anti-air, anti-surface, or for Naval Gun Fire Support. At 5 kg (11 pounds) it is still about twice the weight of a 57mm Mk110 projectile. It has a multifunctional Fuze that provides options for altimetric, proximity, time and air burst, or impact and delayed impact.
Considering the Coast Guard’s implicit requirement to be able to forcibly stop even relatively large merchant ships, the combination of high velocity, semi-armor piercing, and delayed impact fuzing suggest that a BER projectile might have a better chance of penetrating the hull and delaying detonation until the projectile impacts the engine, compared to the other alternatives.
Guided Long Range (GLR):
These projectiles take the form of the unguided Ballistic Extended Range (BER) round and add GPS and inertial guidance to allow precision attack on fixed targets. The control surfaces allow a glide phase that extends the range another 10,000 meters to beyond 40,000 meter or about 22 nautical miles.
Guide Long Range with InfraRed Terminal Homing (GLR/IR):
These projectiles add a infrared terminal homing to the guided long range round so that it can target moving targets on land or water that have an infrared signature. The guidance system defines where the terminal homer will look for a target. It might be possible to defeat this round using IR decoys or obsurants (smoke).
Guided Long Range with Semi-Active Laser Homing (GLR/SAL):
Like the GLR/IR round this uses the form and function of the GLR round but instead of using IR homing, it uses semi-active laser homing, meaning some one or some thing has to illuminate the target with a laser designator. For shore bombardment the laser designator might be in the hands of a soldier on the ground. For targets afloat and ashore the laser designation might be done by an unmanned system.
For a Coast Guard cutter trying to forcibly stop a vessel, the cutter might well use a laser designator to target a particular part of the target vessel.
Conclusion:
If you are going to put only two gun weapon systems on a ship, be it a cutter, corvette, or a large auxiliary, two of these might be a very good choice if they perform as advertised. Range with volcano ammunition is outstanding. The range of ammunition choices make these systems effective against a wide range of threats from swarming small boats, to surface ships, to UAS, to anti-ship cruise missiles. It is essentially one weapon that can do it all, atleast within the visual and radar horizon and in some cases a bit beyond.
Seems a pair of these would be a nice replacement for the two 25mm MK38s that appear to be the planned armament for the the Polar Security Cutter. Would love to see a pair of these replace the 57mm Mk 110 and 25mm Mk38 or Phalanx on our new large cutters. Replacing the Mk38 or Phalanx with SeaRAM seems more probable, but still unlikely, unless things get a lot more tense.
The US Naval Institute news service reports the loss of a Mexican Navy Helicopter with 15 Mexican Marines aboard. There was only one surviror.
Mexican law enforcement were looking for someone with two warrants out for his arrest in Mexico and an extradition order for the United States, according to the release.
The loss was related to the capture of convicted Mexican drug kingpin Rafael Caro Quintero, wanted by US authorities for allegedly kidnapping and conspiring to murder Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent Enrique Camarena Salazar in 1985.
The Mexican Navy and Marine Corps have proven to be one of the most reliable and incorruptable institutions in Mexico. Hopefully the USCG will extend its sympathies to our partners in Mexico. We know how devastating such a loss can be.
Defense News reports their Coast Guardsman of the Year 2022.
Exercise Argus 2022 participants USCGC Oak and HDMS Ejnar Mikkelsen (P571) meet off Greenland. U.S. COAST GUARD
Forbes gives us a look at Exercise Argus which was sponsored by Denmark and conducted off Greenland. Author Craig Hooper also looks at the challenges facing Greenland as tourism and offshore traffic increase exponentially.
Off Greenland, the Danish Joint Arctic Command just finished hosting Exercise Argus, an annual Danish-led training event. The exercise, designed to enhance search-and-rescue and marine environmental responses in the Arctic, offers the U.S. Coast Guard an opportunity to obtain some experience operating in Polar waters.
For the exercise, a range of U.S. Coast Guard elements, joined by units from France—an Arctic Council observer state—worked with Danish and Greenland-based assets. The international team prepared for a complex maritime accident, a catastrophe that most Arctic observers suspect will be inevitable in the years ahead.
Before the exercise commenced, a 225-foot seagoing buoy tender, the Coast Guard Cutter Oak (WLB 211) arrived in Sisimiut, Greenland, becoming one of only a handful of U.S. ships that have operated north of the Arctic Circle. At sea, the tender was joined by a French patrol boat, FS Fulmar (P740), and the capable Danish Knud Rasmussen-class patrol boat, HDMS Ejnar Mikkelsen (P571), as well as by smaller local law enforcement and pollution-response craft.
For a view of an earlier similar exercise, a comparison of the Knud Rasmussen class OPV with the 270 foot WMECs, and some great photographs take a look here.
Some of the weaponry and missile parts seized by HMS Montrose in early 2022.
The U.S. Navy will for the first time reward individuals for reporting information that leads to the detection of illegal maritime activity or seizure of illicit cargo in waters across the Middle East.
The first-of-its-kind program, established by the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT), could potentially reward a maximum $100,000 cash payout or non-monetary items, like boats, vehicles, food or equipment, for tips that support counterterrorism operations or leads U.S. naval forces to successfully seize illicit cargo, such as illegal weapons or narcotics.
This may provide work for the newly arrived Webber class WPCs of PATFORSWA.
In 2021,
U.S. 5th Fleet warships seized nearly 9,000 illicit weapons, three times the amount seized in 2020. Additionally, the U.S.-led Combined Maritime Forces seized illegal drugs worth $500 million in street value, a higher amount than the previous four years combined.
We have a report of Royal Navy seizures in January and February that seems to show there is ample reason to be concerned. (Photo above.)
Below is the original news release. It has been very widely reported.
By NAVCENT Public Affairs | July 05, 2022
MANAMA, Bahrain —
U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) announced July 5 that it will begin rewarding individuals for voluntarily providing information that leads to the detection of illegal maritime activity and seizure of illicit cargo in waters across the Middle East.
NAVCENT is establishing a program for the first time to reward individuals who voluntary report information that meets specific criteria under the Department of Defense Rewards Program.
“Launching this program represents another example of our commitment to this region and its security,” said Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of NAVCENT, U.S. 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces. “This also enhances our vigilance and supports counterterrorism efforts, which are essential to safeguarding the free flow of commerce.”
NAVCENT could potentially reward a maximum $100,000 payout for information or nonlethal assistance that supports counterterrorism operations or leads U.S. naval forces to successfully seize illicit cargo such as illegal weapons or narcotics. Rewards can also be non-monetary and include items like boats, vehicles, food or equipment.
U.S. citizens are not eligible for rewards under the program.
Last year, illicit cargo seizures in the Middle East skyrocketed after U.S. and multinational forces increased patrols in the Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea.
U.S. 5th Fleet warships seized nearly 9,000 illicit weapons, three times the amount seized in 2020. Additionally, the U.S.-led Combined Maritime Forces seized illegal drugs worth $500 million in street value, a higher amount than the previous four years combined.
The U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations encompasses about 2.5 million square miles of water area and includes the Arabian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, Red Sea and parts of the Indian Ocean. The region is comprised of 21 countries and includes three critical choke points at the Strait of Hormuz, the Suez Canal and the Strait of Bab al-Mandeb at the southern tip of Yemen.
Tips can be reported by calling +973 3914-5845. The phone line is staffed by personnel with regional language expertise. Individuals with information can also report online by going to https://dodrewardsprogram.net.
For additional information on how to report a tip or reward eligibility criteria, go to NAVCENT’s website at https://www.cusnc.navy.mil/DoD-RP/.
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