“Bad News” from the Navy, an Upnote for the Coast Guard

Posted on May 23, 2022 by Chuck Hill

USS Zephyr (PC 8) and U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment Pacific personnel, conducting operations in support of JIATF-S Operation Martillo. U.S. Navy photo by MC3 Casey J. Hopkins

Texas Public Radio has a report, “A surge in Navy deserters could be a sign of a bigger problem for the military,” that also references recent suicides in the Navy. I would note that, based on their reporting, there has been no comparable surge in other armed services, and there is good news from the Coast Guard.

“But other branches of the military didn’t see a similar increase in the past three years.Desertions in the Army dropped by 47%, from 328 in 2019 to 174 in 2021, and the Marine Corps reported 59 in 2019 and 31 in 2021. The Coast Guard said it didn’t record a single deserter between 2019 and 2021.”

I would also point out, that 157 desertions out of over 340,000 active duty members is still a pretty smaller percentage (<0.046%, about one out of 2,178), only a little worse than the Army’s much improved 2021 figures, and actually much better than the Army’s 2019 figures.

The TPR report is really using this “surge” as basis for discussing the lack of early out options. While we don’t want to spend a lot of money training someone for a high paying civilian job and then release him or her as soon as they go to a job where their boss actually expects them to do their job, there are times when early separation is good for the service.

Early in my career, it was the Vietnam era. Many enlisted in the Coast Guard, not because they wanted to be there, but because it was a way to avoid the draft. The Ocean Station program was ending, so the Coast Guard decided to decommission many of its larger ships and to truncate the WHEC 378 program at 12 instead of the planned 36. The resulting downsizing meant there would be a large reduction in force. We took advantage of this by early, many times compulsary, separation of many trouble makers and poor performers. It always seemed 90% of our personnel problems were caused by fewer than 10% of our people. This purge had a wonderful effect.

Photos to Share, Report of Collision and Two Canadian AOPS in Key West

Posted on May 22, 2022 by Chuck Hill

An overloaded migrant vessel sails next to the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Confidence off the northwest coast of Haiti on Thursday, May 20, 2022. The Coast Guard said the boat collided with the bow of the cutter. U.S. Coast Guard

Couple of photographs of interest.

First is a photo of a ship I served on, USCGC Confidence (now based in Florida instead of Kodiak). The photo is from a Miami Herald report, “Coast Guard says migrant boat collided with cutter off the coast of Haiti.” (apparently very minor) Confidence is about 56 years old and still doing the job. I see four RHIBs in the photo and Connie has only two. No indication where the other two came from.

The second is from Facebook. What are two Canadian Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS) doing in Key West? One has been doing drug interdiction with the US Coast Guard.

HMCS Harry Dewolf (AOPV 430) and HMCS Margaret Brooke (AOPV 431) alongside at NAS Key West, Florida in late May of 2022. HMCS Margaret Brooke is finishing warm weather trials on the ships cooling systems. HMCS Harry DeWolf is finishing a Op Caribbe with the USCG.

“Coast Guard modifies offshore patrol cutter contract to complete installation of the combat and radar systems” -CG-9

Posted on May 21, 2022 by Chuck Hill

OPC “Placemat”

Below is a post from the Acquisitions Directorate (CG-9). I had never heard of the “Athena combat weapons system” so “Googled” it. The most common thing that came up was an Army laser weapons program. I don’t really think that is what they talking about, but I could be wrong. The post does call it a “weapons system.” I think it may be the Leonardo ATHENA® (Architecture & Technologies Handling Electronic Naval Applications) Combat Management System (CMS). Leonardo’s web page on the system indicates it is the CMS used on the FREMM frigate which is the parent craft for new USN FFG. Maybe the Navy liked the CMS as much as they liked the ship.

The CMS on the Bertholf class cutters is an Aegis based system. I have not heard anything about its application to the offshore patrol cutter (OPC).

Late Addition: Got this, thanks to Timothy H,

AEGIS Athena Baseline 9G

That is good news, since it means there will be commonality between the systems on the NSCs and the OPCs.

The Coast Guard modified its current contract with Eastern Shipbuilding Group (ESG) May 20 so installation of the Athena combat weapons system and multi-mode radar system will be completed during the production phase of the offshore patrol cutter (OPC). The Athena system, radar and armament of the OPC are provided to the Coast Guard as Navy type-Navy owned government furnished equipment.

Prior to this modification, installation of both systems was to occur after contract delivery while each cutter was in its homeport. The Navy has completed development, integration and testing of the Athena and radar systems, enabling the Coast Guard to shift to production-phase installation. Performing this work prior to delivery reduces the technical risks associated with post-delivery installation and delivers mission-ready OPCs to the fleet as soon as possible.

The first four OPCs are currently in production at ESG’’s shipyard in Panama City, Florida.

The OPC meets the service’s need for cutters capable of deploying independently or as part of a larger task force and is essential to stopping smugglers at sea, rescuing mariners, enforcing fisheries laws, responding to disasters, interdicting undocumented individuals and protecting the nation. The acquisition of 25 OPCs will complement the capabilities of the service’s national security cutters and fast response cutters as an essential element of the Department of Homeland Security’s layered maritime security strategy.

For more information: Offshore Patrol Cutter Program page

“US, Japan coast guards formally expand cooperation” –PAC AREA News Release / “Royal Navy and US Coast Guard to Forge Closer Bonds”

Posted on May 20, 2022 by Chuck Hill

Ships from the U.S. Coast Guard and Japan Coast Guard conducted exercises near the Ogasawara Islands of Japan, Feb. 21, 2021. The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Kimball and Japan Coast Guard Ship Akitsushima, two of the respective services’ newest and most capable vessels, operated alongside helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles to practice interdicting foreign vessels operating illegally inside Japanese waters. (U.S. Coast Guard photo courtesy of the Coast Guard Cutter Kimball/Released)

The Coast Guard has been busy increasing its international visibility. Below is a news release concerning increased cooperation with the Japanese Coast Guard that came out yesterday. Today, I see a SeaWaves report, also dated yesterday that,

“The Royal Navy and US Coast Guard have vowed to work more closely to fight crime and protect the planet. The two services already combine to stop drugs traffickers in the Caribbean and Middle East, assist each other with operations in the polar regions, run exchange programs for sailors and frequently work and train side-by-side around the globe.”

The new relationship with the Royal Navy includes expanded personnel postings that began back in 2014.

There are also plans to build on already successful exchange programs, which allows USCG engineers to work with the Royal Navy but will soon also allow pilots and aircrew to do the same. (emphasis applied–Chuck)

Perhaps we are not too far from exercising something like my proposed “Combined Maritime Security Task Force Pacific” with a US Coast Guard Cutter, a Japanese Coast Guard Cutter, and a Royal Navy River Class OPV working with navies and coast guards of SE Asia to protect their EEZ. Perhaps the Indian Coast Guard will join as well.

News Release

May 19, 2022
U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area

US, Japan coast guards formally expand cooperation

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

TOKYO — The United States and Japan coast guards formally expanded cooperative agreements and established a new perpetual operation during a ceremony Wednesday in Tokyo.

Vice Adm. Michael McAllister, commander of U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area, and Vice Adm. Yoshio Seguchi, Japan Coast Guard vice commandant for operations, represented their respective services during the historic document signing ceremony and celebration at Japan Coast Guard Headquarters.

Although a memorandum of cooperation between the sea services has existed since 2010, strengthened relationships, increasing bilateral engagements and continued focus on maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific necessitated expansion of the memorandum.

The new operation’s name, SAPPHIRE, is an acronym for Solid Alliance for Peace and Prosperity with Humanity and Integrity on the Rule of law based Engagement, and it honors the gem regarded as an emblem of integrity and affection found throughout the Indo-Pacific.

Operation Sapphire encompasses all the annual interactions between the Japan and U.S. coast guards, with the goal of increasing interactions over time.

To formalize the expanded cooperation, annexes were added to the existing memorandum of cooperation outlining Operation Sapphire to include standard operating procedures for combined operations, training and capacity building, and information sharing.

“We rely on our partners, allies, and like-minded nations to achieve our shared missions,” said McAllister. “As evidenced by this agreement, our relationship with the Japan Coast Guard is stronger than ever, and I am looking forward to many more decades of partnership and collaborative operations in the Indo-Pacific.”

“We will conduct smooth cooperation in the fields of joint operation, capacity building and information sharing by this agreement” said Seguchi. “Sapphire embodies the rule-of-law based engagement between the coast guards, and we will expand the principle of Free and Open Indo-Pacific to other nations.”

“LET THE NAVY RETIRE LCS AND BUILD A U.S. MARITIME CONSTABULARY INSTEAD” –CIMSEC

Posted on May 19, 2022 by Chuck Hill

Indonesian Maritime Security Agency vessel KN Tanjung Datu, left, sails alongside U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Stratton during joint exercises in the Singapore Strait in August 2019. IMAGE CREDIT: PO1 LEVI READ/USCG

CIMSEC has an opinion piece written by Bryan Clark and Craig Hooper, both influential defense journalists, that advocates,

The Congress and DoD leadership should embrace the Navy’s focus on high-end warfare by shifting security and training missions to ships operated by other services, specifically the Coast Guard and Military Sealift Command. Congressional leaders have expressed interest in adding defense-related spending to the White House FY2023 budget proposal, which could build more of the existing ships the Coast Guard and MSC would use. And to operate them, the up to $2 billion in annual LCS sustainment, basing costs, and manpower funding could be moved to these new mission owners. If the Navy sheds the small boat mission, the costs should be taken out of the Navy’s budget.

We have seen that, to some extent, this has already taken place, but without the movement of money to the new providers.

The Navy hopes to save money by retiring LCS, so they can put money in other Navy programs, not so that they can hand it over to another agency (although, yes, MSC is really part of the Navy).

Navy seamanship training has had a lot problems recently, and I think a lot of that can be traced to the lack of smaller vessels with smaller wardrooms, where junior officers can get more experience in shiphandling. The Navy does not allow their surface warfare officers to specialize on their first tour. They are supposed to learn about complex engineering and weapons as well as seamanship and deck watch standing while serving on ships that may have many times the number of JOs that are on CG ships. The Navy is eight times the size of the Coast Guard, but the Coast Guard has almost as many wardrooms as the Navy. The Coast Guard has roughly 250 coastal and ocean-going cutters, patrol ships, buoy tenders, tugs, and icebreakers; as well as nearly 2,000 small boats and specialized craft. The US Navy has about 296 ships and a number of those are manned by civilian mariners of the MSC. On top of that, Navy ships are generally underway a smaller percentage of the time than Coast Guard ships, and Coast Guard vessels operate more frequently in high traffic coastal areas. It should not be surprising that Navy officers in general have less seamanship experience than their Coast Guard and merchant marine counterparts. Unless the Navy develops a cadre of ship driving specialists, shedding their smaller ships will only exacerbate the problem.

“Coast Guard Academy graduates record number of officers” –CGA news release

Posted on May 18, 2022 by Chuck Hill

Coast Guard Academy 141st Commencement Exercises May 18, 2022. The Coast Guard Academy graduated 252 new officers along with nine international students. (U.S. Coast Guard photo courtesy of Mr. David Lau)

This is about twice as large as my graduating class, 53 years ago. Interesting class composition including international students and first cyber systems graduates.

News Release

U.S. Coast Guard Academy

Coast Guard Academy graduates record number of officers

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

NEW LONDON, Conn. — The U.S. Coast Guard Academy graduated 252 new officers along with nine international students with keynote speaker Vice President Kamala Harris in attendance during the 141^st Commencement Exercises Wednesday, May 18.

The Class of 2022 consisted of 87 cadets from underrepresented minority groups including the largest number of Asian American and Pacific Islanders to graduate in Academy history.

This year also marked the second highest number of cadets to commission into the Coast Guard in addition to 21 Cyber Systems graduates, the first to graduate from the newly instituted major to meet the needs of the service’s cybersecurity strategy of defending cyber space, enabling operations, and protecting infrastructure.

The new officers will begin to serve as leaders in a variety of operational roles throughout the Coast Guard, mostly on cutters.

Nine graduating international cadets from the countries of Cambodia, Iceland, Jordan, Mexico, Madagascar, Palau, Panama, Rwanda and the Ukraine will serve in their respective countries of origin.

“We view our cadets as our eyes and ears and hands and hearts, wherever you serve,” said Vice President Kamala Harris. “You are doing the critical work — you will be doing the critical work to protect our country, to advance our interests, and to shape the trajectory of world affairs.”

Founded in 1876, the Coast Guard Academy is one of the five U.S. service academies and is ranked among the nation’s most prestigious and selective institutions of higher learning.

Australia Destroys Chinese and Indonesian F/Vs Caught Illegally Fishing

Posted on May 18, 2022 by Chuck Hill

This isn’t new, the reports date from November 2021, here and here, but I had not heard about it previously.

The practice isn’t unique to Australia. Indonesia famously, routinely blows up fishing vessels caught fishing illegally in Indonesian waters and I found this 2015 report that Palau had burned four Vietnamese fishing vessels.

Thanks to Lee for bringing this to my attention.

“Ready Work Force 2030” –MyCG

Posted on May 17, 2022 by Chuck Hill

180710-N-CW570-1068
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii (July 10, 2018) U.S. Coast Guardsmen assigned to Regional Dive Locker Pacific conduct diving operations during a decontaminated water diving symposium at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise, July 10, 2018. Twenty-five nations, 46 ships, five submarines, about 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC from June 27 to Aug. 2 in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California. The world’s largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security of the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2018 is the 26th exercise in the series that began in 1971. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Arthurgwain L. Marquez/Released)

The following was lifted from MyCG. The document is linked in the announcement but I am adding my own link here if you want to go directly.

I always get a bit nervous when the word “transformation” is used, but I am sure everyone would agree that the personnel management system could be improved. One thing that always bothered me, was that the evaluation system for officers always seemed to require that every officer be “well rounded.” Sure that is nice, but you really only have to be really good at one thing to be useful, and a lot of talented people were lost because they were not well rounded. The word “evaluation” is used only once in the document and fitness reports not at all. But even so, the document suggests we should see much greater flexibility–Check out page eleven.

The Coast Guard has released a strategy for revolutionizing how we build, develop and manage our tremendously talented force in the coming decades. Ready Workforce 2030 (RW30) challenges the service to be inspiring, agile, adaptive and efficient as we strive to maintain our competitive edge in an increasingly dynamic labor market.

“Change must be revolutionary, pervasive and transformative,” Adm. Karl L. Schultz writes in the new strategy.

The strategy calls for more career flexibility, training and learning options. The primary lines of effort are:

Transform how we recruit, hire, and retain our workforce
Modernize training systems and delivery
Provide world-class member support

“Conditions of service that I accepted 41 years ago when I entered the Coast Guard Academy are no longer acceptable to our workforce,” said Vice Commandant Linda Fagan. “We must take decisive action to think differently and redefine our assumptions to transform our talent management system so there is more flexibility built in to make it easier for those who want to serve.”

Adm. Fagan, Vice Adm. Paul Thomas and Command Master Chief Jahmal Pereira joined Adm. Schultz this week to share the plan with leaders from the enlisted, officer, and civilian workforce programs.

They made clear that the Coast Guard can change as quickly as service culture will permit. “This is going to take cultural change,” Fagan said. “It’s going to create some discomfort. But RW30 will help us create the workforce we need.”

Fagan emphasized that our core values will remain our greatest strength. “The sense of belonging, the team, the camaraderie – that’s what we offer as an employer.”

Potential RW30 initiatives include:

Assignment or billet-banding management processes to increase career growth and flexibility.
Programs to promote and reward talent development
A “no-penalty opt-out” for consideration by a promotion board for members in the process of changing specialties or addressing acute work-life issues
Non-monetary, incentives-based reenlistment alternatives similar to those available in the private sector.

“We’re building and revising policies for OUR Coast Guard,” Fagan said. “We’re all invested.”

As RW30 planning gets underway, MyCG will share regular updates along with opportunities for you to help shape the transformation.

All Hands Briefer (AHB)

Posted on May 16, 2022 by Chuck Hill

Got this as an email, am passing it along. Thought some might be interested in signing up. Others might just be pleased to see the effort being made to keep the troops informed.

I don’t expect to post these on a regular basis.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Below, please find the key announcements and updates from this week. As part of our continual efforts to inform, support, and inspire our workforce, commands are encouraged to share this information with all hands. To receive the All Hands Briefer (AHB) directly, please follow the directions provided below the Calendar section.

NEWS

SUPPORT

INSPIRATION

CALENDAR
A CAC might be required to access some links. To add a solicitation or event, please e-mail MyCG@uscg.mil.
18 MAY: Nominations due for National Defense Transportation Association Award
19 MAY: Change of Watch ceremony for MCPOCG and MCPO-CGR
20 MAY: Nominations due for John J. Jaskot Governmental Affairs Officer of the Year Award
26-31 MAY: CG Gaming Esports Competition
31 MAY: Deadline for the Ideas@Work Challenge on prioritizing Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear readiness.
01 JUN: U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Change of Command
01 JUN: Nominations for CAPT Edward R. Williams Coast Guard Award for Excellence in Diversity
03 JUN: Nominations due for Rescue at Sea 2022 Awards
03-05 JUN: Tom’s Run
15 JUN: Nominations due for Excellence in Safety Award
28 JUN: Nominations due for 2022 Latina Style Distinguished Military Service Award
25-29 JUL: 50^th Annual National Naval Officers Association Leadership, Development, and Training Symposium
07-11 AUG: CPOA and CGEA National Conventions
15 AUG: Nominations due for Maritime Security and Response Operations Excellence awards

Upcoming Officer Personnel Management Virtual Outreach Sessions
For details, please see ALCGOFF 007/22
25 MAY: Afloat Assignments
08 JUN: Intel/DCMS and Cyberspace Assignments
22 JUN: Aviation Assignments
20 JUL: Chief Warrant Officer Assignments

Very Respectfully,
Coast Guard Office of Public Affairs (CG-0922)
2703 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue Southeast, Stop 7103
Washington, D.C., 20593-7103

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Victory Day Address from Ukraine

Posted on May 9, 2022 by Chuck Hill

Cdr Salamander posted the video above with comments. I felt I had to share it.

Chuck Hill's CG Blog