Coast Guard Los Angles Looks at MQ-8C

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Picked this up off the Coast Guard Aviation Association’s Facebook page. A post by U. S. Coast Guard Los Angeles.

Today, members from Sector Enforcement travelled to Naval Base Ventura County at Point Mugu, Calif. to discuss the possible use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles to support Coast Guard missions. Pictured is the Navy’s MQ-8C Fire Scout, an unmanned helicopter used for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.

Is the Coast Guard looking to buy MQ-8C? It is not unlikely, the Navy wants to exercise these assets in an operational environment. Cutters doing drug interdiction are almost perfect for them. This is more likely looking at an opportunity for a Navy Detachment to deploy with a cutter than that the Coast Guard is looking to buy MQ-8C.

The MQ-8C should be able to search a much larger area than the Scan Eagles we are using now. The four National Security Cutters in Alameda have room for one of these in addition to an H-65 and Scan Eagle. There are also two WMEC 210 on the West Coast that might use these, but I would expect to see Scan Eagle on the WMECs before Fire Scout, but it is a possibility.

The First two OPCs are coming to San Pedro, hopefully, beginning next year. They also have ample aviation space, so perhaps they are a possibility as well.

This could be a win-win.

“Army Set To Buy Computerized Rifle Sights For Shooting Down Drones” –The Drive / Marines Have Bought Some Too

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The Drive reports on a new rifle sight that is much more than just a sight. You pick the target and when the weapon is on target, the rifle fires.

Obviously the PATFORSWA patrol craft have a Counter-UAS mission, but we have not seen any hard kill C-UAS system. This might work, though the range is relatively short.

This also looks like it could be useful for Coast Guard special teams as well, for something like a hostage situation, and perhaps for airborne use of force.

Wonder if you could get it to work on a .50 cal.?

“U.S., U.K. Navies Conduct Unmanned Exercise in Arabian Gulf” –Seapower / and the Coast Guard is There

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Naval forces from the United States and United Kingdom conducted a bilateral exercise in the Arabian Gulf, Oct. 7. U.S. NAVY (That is USCGC Robert Goldman (WPC 1142) at the end of the column.)

The Navy League’s on-line magazine, Seapower, reports,

Naval forces from the United States and United Kingdom conducted a bilateral exercise in the Arabian Gulf, Oct. 7, which featured the use of unmanned systems and artificial intelligence to enhance maritime monitoring by crewed ships and operators ashore, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command Public Affairs said in an Oct. 7 release.

The one-day exercise, called Phantom Scope, occurred in international waters off the coast of Bahrain with forces from U.S. 5th Fleet and the UK Royal Navy. Three Saildrone Explorer unmanned surface vessels (USVs) participated alongside guided-missile destroyer USS Delbert D. Black (DDG 119), fast response cutter USCGC Robert Goldman (WPC 1142) and Royal Navy mine countermeasures vessels HMS Chiddingfold (M37) and HMS Bangor (M109).

US Naval Forces, Central Command, has been very actively pushing and experimenting with unmanned systems and the Coast Guard’s PATFORSWA has been actively involved in these experiments. Hopefully some of the experience will help the Coast Guard with its own exploitation of unmanned systems.

Two MANTAS T-12 unmanned surface vessels operate alongside a U.S. Coast Guard patrol boat during exercise New Horizon in the Arabian Gulf. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Dawson Roth)

More on the Waterways Commerce Cutter

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All of Birdon’s production activities will take place at Bollinger Shipyards in Lockport, La. Birdon America photo

One of our readers, Andy, brought this WorkBoat article, which has much more information about the team of organizations that will be building the Waterways Commerce Cutters and where they will be built.

Birdon is building on its experience and expertise in program management, design, manufacture, and support of the USCG and U.S. Army watercraft programs, by teaming with carefully selected partners. Bollinger Shipyards (Bollinger) and Incat Crowther will be key subcontractors to Birdon and share Birdon’s commitment to delivering for the USCG. The entire delivery team will work under Birdon’s integrated, standardized leadership model, which is proven across numerous multiple-site projects in the U.S. and abroad.

“Coast Guard interdicts 87 lanchas off Texas coast in fiscal year 2022” –D8

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A Station South Padre Island law enforcement boat crew stops a lancha crew engaged in illegal fishing in federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico April 30, 2020. Coast Guard law enforcement crews seized approximately 5,000 lbs of Red Snapper, 450 lbs of shark, and illegal fishing equipment from five lancha crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Station South Padre Island) 

Below is a District 8 (HQ New Orleans) news release that provides a full year of data.

 News Release U.S. Coast Guard 8th District Public Affairs Detachment Texas

Coast Guard interdicts 87 lanchas off Texas coast in fiscal year 2022

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Coast Guard law enforcement crews interdicted 87 lanchas, seized 15,809 pounds of catch and detained 373 fishermen off the Texas coast during fiscal year 2022.

Since the first recorded lancha interdiction in the late 1980s, the Coast Guard has seen a significant uptick in the detection of the vessels, recording an 11.5 percent increase in interdicted lanchas from fiscal year 2021.

A noteworthy case from this year occurred on Aug. 30, when Coast Guard crews interdicted three lanchas with a total of 14 Mexican fishermen, 2,425 pounds of red snapper and 440 pounds of shark aboard.

To counter illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, the Coast Guard utilizes a layered approach for operations through aircraft, small boats, and cutters.

Up to 27 million tons of fish are caught illegally each year throughout the world. IUU fishing accounts for 20 to 30 percent of global annual catch. Global losses from IUU fishing are estimated to be as much as $23.5 billion per year.

“We view the lancha issue as an immediate threat to our living marine resources, border security, and U.S. sovereignty,” said Lt. Cmdr. Brendan Dunn, assistant chief of enforcement, Coast Guard District Eight. “In recent years, the illegal trade of red snapper, grouper, shark and other reef fish species has become extremely lucrative for the transnational criminal organizations operating in Mexico. With the continual increase of at-sea lancha interdictions, we would like to recognize the tremendous efforts of our field units at Coast Guard Sector and Air Station Corpus Christi, Station South Padre Island, our fast response cutters and patrol boats. We also thank our regional, state and federal partners for their tenacious commitment, professionalism, and teamwork to support this mission.”

A lancha is a fishing boat used by Mexican fishermen that is approximately 20-30 feet long with a slender profile. They typically have one outboard motor and are capable of traveling at speeds exceeding 30 mph. Lanchas pose a major threat, usually entering the United States Exclusive Economic Zone near the U.S.-Mexico border in the Gulf of Mexico with the intent to smuggle people, drugs, or poach the United State’s natural resources.

If you witness suspicious activity or illegal fishing out to 200 miles offshore, please contact the U.S. Coast Guard at 361-939-0450.

For more information follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

“Lantern room lifted off Scituate Lighthouse as $2 million restoration begins” –The Patriot Ledger

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The top of the Scituate Lighthouse is removed to make way for a replacement Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.

Photo by Gregg Derr/The Patriot Ledger

Report of an historic lighthouse preservation effort from The Patriot Ledger.

The lantern room of the Scituate Lighthouse was removed Thursday morning after preservation experts discovered the iron columns connecting the room to the tower are severely corroded…The lantern room of the 211-year-old lighthouse will be completely rebuilt through a $2 million project paid for by the Scituate Community Preservation Fund. The work includes putting in a new frame, new window frames, new copper cladding and glazing.

“Stage 2 of the Coast Guard offshore patrol cutter moves forward” –CG HQ News Release

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Artists rendering from Eastern Shipbuilding Group

Below is a news release. Just minutes before I saw this, I recieved an email from Jessica Ditto, Eastern’s VP, Communications

As you might have seen, ESG is going to the Court of Federal Claims (COFC) to challenge the OPC stage II award decision. COFC is not an appeal, but a new proceeding that allows ESG to seek the disclosure materials that have been withheld by the government in the GAO protest. Here is our statement:

“The federal procurement process is designed to be fair and transparent. Ordinarily, the government discloses reasonable justification for its award decisions to the attorneys representing the parties in a protest. The government has declined to voluntarily disclose the information that might offer that justification. As a result, we are seeking the information and justification through a different legal pathway,” said Joey D’Isernia, President of Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Inc.

News Release

U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters
Contact: Headquarters Public Affairs

Stage 2 of the Coast Guard offshore patrol cutter moves forward

WASHINGTON — The Coast Guard today issued a notice to Austal USA, the offshore patrol cutter (OPC) Stage 2 contractor, to proceed on detail design work to support future production of OPCs. The Coast Guard issued the notice following the withdrawal of an award protest filed in July with the Government Accountability Office by an unsuccessful Stage 2 offeror.

The Coast Guard on June 30, 2022, awarded a fixed-price incentive (firm target) contract through a full and open competition to Austal USA to produce up to 11 offshore patrol cutters. The initial award is valued at $208.26 million and supports detail design and long lead-time material 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 requirements for OPC Stage 2 detail design and production were developed to maintain commonality with earlier OPCs in critical areas such as the hull and propulsion systems, but provide flexibility to propose and implement new design elements that benefit lifecycle cost, production and operational efficiency and performance.

The 25-ship OPC program of record complements the capabilities of the service’s national security cutters, fast response cutters and polar security cutters as an essential element of the Department of Homeland Security’s layered maritime security strategy. The OPC will meet the service’s long-term need for cutters capable of deploying independently or as part of task groups and is essential to stopping smugglers at sea, interdicting undocumented non-citizens, rescuing mariners, enforcing fisheries laws, responding to disasters and protecting ports.

For more information: Offshore Patrol Cutter Program page.

“Coast Guard awards River Buoy, Inland Construction Tender detail design and construction contract” –CG HQ News Release

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Shown above are Coast Guard indicative designs of a river buoy tender, inland construction tender and inland buoy tender.

The news release is below.

Congressional Research Service has an Aug. 30, 2022, two page explanation of the program.

For background, my most recent previous related posts:

“Ohio River Bomb Spree Shows Need For New Coast Guard Waterways Commerce Cutters” –Forbes Nov. 2021

“Coast Guard releases request for information for boats to support waterways commerce cutters” –CG-9 Oct. 2021

“Waterways Commerce Cutter: It’s Time for an Upgrade” MarineLink June 2021

Update, “Coast Guard Waterways Commerce Cutter (WCC) Program: Background and Issues for Congress” –CRS Feb. 2021

There are others: https://chuckhillscgblog.net/?s=waterways+commerce+cutter&submit=Search

 News Release

U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters

 

Coast Guard awards River Buoy, Inland Construction Tender detail design and construction contract

WASHINGTON – On Oct. 5, 2022, the Coast Guard Waterways Commerce Cutter (WCC) Program awarded Birdon America, Inc. of Denver, Colo., an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity firm fixed price contract with economic price adjustments for the detail design and construction of its river buoy and inland construction tenders.

The initial award is worth $28.49 million. The contract includes options for the construction of a total of 16 river buoy tenders and 11 inland construction tenders.

If all contract line items are exercised, the total contract value is estimated at $1.19 billion.

River buoy tenders service short-range aids to navigation (ATON) on the western rivers. They set, relocate and recover buoys to mark the navigable channel in the rivers as the water level changes and also establish and maintain fixed aids, lights and day beacons.

Inland construction tenders construct, repair and maintain fixed ATON within inland waterways along the Eastern Seaboard and Gulf of Mexico. They are the only Coast Guard platform with the capability to drive and remove piles, erect towers and effect major structural changes. 

The Coast Guard has a statutory mission to develop, establish and maintain maritime ATON.  WCCs will perform a critical part of this mission on the inland waterways and western rivers. The WCCs will replace the legacy inland tender fleet, which has an average vessel age of over 57 years and includes ships still in service at 78 years old. This contract award ensures the Coast Guard will continue to meet its vital missions throughout the Marine Transportation System.

“This contract award is an important milestone for the new inland fleet that will improve our operational capability on the Western Rivers, and Inland Waterways” said Adm. Linda Fagan, Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard.

The new WCCs will have greater endurance, speed and deck load capacity than their predecessors. The ships will also feature improved habitability and will accommodate mixed-gender crews.

More information on the WCC: Waterways Commerce Cutter program page

Former USCGC MUNRO is in the hands of New Owners

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SeaWaves reports,

Sri Lanka Navy officially took delivery of the EX-United States Coast Guard Cutter, USCGC Douglas Munro, provided by the United States, on 26th October 2021. Subsequently, she was designated with the Pennant Number P 627 in SLN Fleet and underwent certain modernization equipped to suit the operational needs of the Sri Lanka Navy. The ship departed for Sri Lanka from the Port of Seattle, United States on 03rd September 2022.

Sri Lanka now has three former US Coast Guard cutters, two 378s, Sherman and Douglas Munro, and a 210, the former USCGC Courageous.

Wikipedia has a listing of where the 378s are now.