Coast Guard Cutters Emlen Tunnell and Glen Harris are moored pierside in Beirut, Lebanon, Jan. 31, 2022. The two fast response cutters are deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations to help ensure maritime security and stability in the Middle East region. U.S. Army photo by Cpl. DeAndre Dawkins.

Defense Daily reports,

“An omnibus spending bill to fund the federal government for fiscal year 2022 would add $130 million for two Coast Guard fast response cutters (FRCs), continuing the program beyond its planned buy of 64 vessels…”

This is not too surprising considering the frequently sighted need for additional Coast Guard resources in the Western Pacific. This will probably allow the Coast Guard to place two of the cutters in American Samoa. These two additional vessels are part of a option for up to twelve vessels that will expire May 2023. I am a bit surprised Congress did not choose to buy more than two. Presumably that option will still be open for a bit more than a year.

Thanks to Lee for bringing this to my attention.

Photo of a model of Halter Marine’s Polar Security Cutter seen at Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space Exhibition have surfaced. Photo credit Chris Cavas.

Just passing this along for those who might not normally get the word. Should be some interesting information coming out of the expo less than a month from now.

R 102106Z MAR 22 MID200001573619U FM COMDT COGARD WASHINGTON DC TO ALCOAST BT UNCLAS ALCOAST 082/22 SSIC 5700 SUBJ: 2022 SEA-AIR-SPACE (SAS) GLOBAL MARITIME EXPOSITION 1. The annual Sea-Air-Space (SAS) Global Maritime Exposition will be held 04-06 April 2022 at the Gaylord National Resort and Conference Center, located in National Harbor, MD. SAS was founded in 1965 as a means to bring the U.S. defense industrial base, private-sector United States companies and military leaders together for an annual educational, innovative, and professional event located in the heart of Washington, DC. Sea-Air-Space is now the largest maritime exposition in the U.S. and continues as an invaluable extension of the Navy League’s mission of maritime policy, education, and sea service support. 2. This year’s exposition will feature U.S. Coast Guard senior leaders participating in panel discussions on the Arctic domain readiness; Indo-Pacific security strategy; cybersecurity; women’s leadership; illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing; energy and climate response; and more. This event will provide USCG participants’ professional development opportunities with the most up-to-date information regarding the current state of the defense industry, as well as a vision of the future. Dynamic luncheon and keynote speakers will provide members an open forum to fully disclose up-to-the-minute information relevant to CG missions which will improve CG processes and ensure we set the conditions for a better CG future. 3. In conjunction with Sea-Air-Space 2022, the annual Navy League STEM Expo will also be at the Gaylord National Resort and Conference Center on Sunday, 03 April. Anyone attending SAS is welcome at the STEM Expo. 4. Subject to command approval, attendance is allowed at no cost to the government. Supervisors should ensure attendance aligns with an employee’s primary duties. Employees who wish to attend for personal interests may use annual leave, accrued compensatory time off or earned credit hours (if available), or leave without pay. Commands outside the National Capital Region may submit no-cost permissive orders for military members who attend. 5. Registration information and exposition details are available on the SAS website: (Copy and Paste Below URL into Browser) www.seaairspace.org 6. There is no charge to attend SAS for Coast Guard military members or Coast Guard civilian employees. 7. A shuttle will run from Coast Guard Headquarters to SAS and back regularly Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of the exposition. The shuttle schedule, parking rates, and other logistical details are available on the SAS website. 8. Uniform is Tropical Blue or equivalent for uniformed attendees and professional business attire for civilians. 9. The COMDT (CG-0923) POC is LCDR Emily Brockway, 202-372-4602, Emily.H.Brockway@uscg.mil. 10. RDML M. M. Dean, Director, Governmental and Public Affairs (CG-092), sends. 11. Internet release is authorized.

Petty Officer 1st Class Cory Sumner, a Maritime Enforcement Specialist at Maritime Safety and Security Team San Francisco, holds K9 Feco at the Animals in War and Peace Medal of Bravery and Distinguished Service Medal Ceremony March 9, 2022 at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C. Sumner is K9 Feco’s handler and trainer at the Canine Explosive Detection Team at Maritime Safety and Security Team San Francisco. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Kimberly Reaves)

Had to pass this along. I note the dog is a Chief and the handler is a First Class, so the Dog out ranks the handler?

Alameda-based Coast Guard K-9 recognized with Distinguished Service Medal

Editor’s Note: Click on images above to download full-resolution version.

ALAMEDA, Calif. – Coast Guard K-9 Chief Feco, a 9-year-old Hungarian Vizsla, stationed at Coast Guard Marine Safety and Security Team San Francisco, was presented the Animals in War and Peace Distinguished Service Medal Wednesday in Washington, D.C.

Members of Congress recognized and honored six animal heroes for their accomplishments in both war and peace at the second annual Animals in War and Peace Medal Ceremony.

The ceremony highlights America’s appreciation of the sacrifices and heroism of American animals who served the United States and advances the effort toward the creation of an annual process to nominate animals for the Medal of Bravery and Distinguished Service Medal.

Feco joined the Coast Guard in late 2014 and is stationed at the Marine Safety and Security Team San Francisco K-9 Unit where his main responsibility is explosives detection at the Ports of San Francisco and Oakland.

Feco has participated in 1,467 events. Notable events include:

• Presidential security details for former President Barack Obama
• Judicial and Supreme Court security details
• 2016 Summer Olympic Track & Field Trials
• The National Football League Superbowls L, LII, and LIII
• The National Baseball League World Series
• The National Basketball League Playoffs
• The National Hockey League Stanley Cup
• San Francisco and Los Angeles Fleet Weeks

The Coast Guard has 16 canine explosive detection teams around the country made up of one human handler and one working dog.

Coast Guard cutters Glen Harris, Wrangell, Emlen Tunnell and Maui transit in formation in the Gulf of Oman, Feb. 26, 2022. Photo by Army Cpl. DeAndre Dawkins. 220226-A-AI379-760M.JPG

The US Naval Institute (USNI) has announced its 2022 Coast Guard Essay Contest.  Prizes are $5000, $2500, and $1500, but more important is the opportunity to get you ideas aired.

Submission Guidelines

• Open to all contributors — active-duty, military, reservists, veterans, and civilians.
• Essays must be no more than 2,500 words, excluding end notes and sources. Include word count on title page of the essay.
• Essays are judged in the blind. Do not include author name(s) on the title page or within the body of the essay.
• Submit essay as a Word document at http://www.usni.org/cgessay no later than 30 April 2022.
• Essay must be original and not previously published (online or in print) or being considered for publication elsewhere.

If you make a submission, and if it is not accepted for publication by the USNI, send it to me, and I will consider publishing it.

I had intended to watch for this milestone, but looks like about two months ago this website had its 2 millionth view since it was begun in July 2012. Another way to look at it is that we have had over 561,000 individual visits.

Thanks for making it worth doing.

M/V Helt Photo by Peter aus Holtenau via Marine Traffic

gCaptain reports that a NATO (Estonian) flag merchant vessel has been sunk, reportedly as a result of Russian action.

It was a small ship with a small crew. Two crewmembers were rescued. Four crewmembers are missing.

The circumstances of the loss were not clear. It may be that the ship was forced to transit a minefield.

USCGC Polar Star, despite her age is still doing the job.

Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star reaches southernmost navigable waters on Earth

Editors’ Note: Click on images above to view and download photos and video.

MCMURDO STATION, Antarctica — U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) reached the southernmost navigable waters on the planet Feb. 17 while underway in the Bay of Whales, Antarctica.

Polar Star reached a position of 78 degrees, 44 minutes, 1.32 seconds south latitude at 12:55 p.m. New Zealand time, holding a distance of approximately 500 yards from the edge of the Ross Ice Shelf, further south than the current Guinness World Record holder.

While underway, Polar Star sailed in waters previously charted as part of the ice shelf that are now navigable waters. Today, portions of the Ross Ice Shelf deviate approximately 12 nautical miles from the positions depicted on official charts.

During Polar Star’s transit to and from the Bay of Whales, Polar Star surveyed 396 nautical miles of the ice shelf for potential future navigational use.

Crewmembers aboard the cutter are working with the staff at Guinness World Records to officially become the new record holders.

Feb. 7, 1997, U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Sea (WAGB 11), Polar Star’s sister ship, reached 78 degrees, 29 minutes south latitude.

In 1908, Ernest Shackleton gave the Bay of Whales its name during the Nimrod Expedition on the basis of the numerous whales he and his crew sighted. Three years later, Roald Amundsen established a base camp in the bay, from which he set out on his successful endeavor to become the first person to reach the South Pole. Years later, U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Richard E. Byrd established Little America in the Bay of Whales during his first, second, and third Antarctic Expeditions, exploring more than 60% of the Antarctic continent.

“The crew of Polar Star is proud to follow in the footsteps of legendary Antarctic explorers like Shackleton, Amundsen, and Byrd,” said Capt. William Woityra, commanding officer of Polar Star. “Even today, more than a century later, we carry on that legacy of exploration, reaching new places, and expanding human understanding of our planet.”

Below is a D14 news release regarding another South Pacific patrol by a pairing of a buoy tender and a Webber class WPC, both based in Honolulu. The pairing is necessary because we don’t have bases in the vicinity that can provide support for the WPC. This pair may in some respects be better than sending a single larger cutter, but the notable missing element is air support, e.g., no embarked helicopter or Unmanned Air System.

U.S. Coast Guard Patrols EEZ in partnership with Samoa

Editors’ Note: Click on images to download a high-resolution version.

HONOLULU — Working with the Government of Samoa, crews from the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Juniper (WLB 201) and USCGC Joseph Gerczak (WPC 1126) conducted security patrol operations in Samoa’s exclusive economic zone throughout February 2022, to protect fisheries and other natural resources.

The Juniper and Joseph Gerczak crews helped fill the operational presence needed to deter illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing while Samoa’s Nafanua II patrol boat is down.

“We always look forward to assisting our partners in the region,” said Cmdr. Jeff Bryant, the 14th District’s chief of enforcement. “The United States offered to assist the government of Samoa by providing security and sovereignty operations in Samoan waters due to the absence of their patrol boat.”

The cutters have been underway in Oceania supporting Operation Aiga, designed to integrate Coast Guard capabilities and operations with the United States’ Pacific Island Country partners in order to effectively and efficiently protect shared national interests, combat IUU fishing and strengthen maritime governance on the high seas.

As a trusted partner in the Pacific, the Coast Guard employs 11 bilateral shiprider agreements with Pacific Island Forum nations, like Samoa, to support resource security and fisheries enforcement. These agreements enabled the Coast Guard to aid host-nation sovereignty while patrolling Samoa’s EEZ.

The United States Coast Guard and the Government of Samoa have a history of partnership; in 2019, the Coast Guard cutters Walnut and Joseph Gerczak visited Apia Harbor and conducted patrol operations with officials from Samoa’s Ministry of Police and Ministry of Fisheries on board. In 2021, the crew of the CGC Oliver Berry conducted similar patrols while Samoa’s patrol boat underwent repairs.

“Operation Aiga is named that for a reason. Aiga means family in Samoan and that’s how we view our Pacific neighbors,” says U.S. Ambassador to Samoa, Ambassador Udall. “This is real partnership. Together we can stop those who seek to steal valuable resources that simply don’t belong to them.”

With a population of approximately 40 million people covering an area of 3.3 million square miles, the Coast Guard and its international partners regularly patrol Oceania to protect and support those who call it home.

Maritime Executive reports attacks on at least two merchant ships. Apparently, the Ukrainian coast guard counterparts are still operating.

A Ukrainian SAR vessel reportedly responded rescuing the crew from the water and transporting them to shore.

I have to wonder what is happening to Ukraine’s coast guard counterparts? I think this may be a sample.

“The flagship of Russia’s Black Sea fleet — the missile cruiser Moskva and the patrol ship Vasily Bykov — were reported in the area, according to the Ukrainians.” August 2012 Ministry of Defense photo from Wikipedia commons.