Other “Coast Guards'” New Ships and Early Disposals

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Some news on fleet changes in the UK and New Zealand Navies with regard to their ships that do Coast Guard type work.

The Brits are building three new offshore patrol vessels. They will be built (before the first USCG Offshore Patrol Cutter) to essentially the same design as the three Offshore Patrol Vessels built for Trinidad and Tobago (video above) that I encouraged the Coast Guard to buy or lease four years ago when Trinidad and Tobago refused to pay for the ships they had contracted and BAE was looking for a buyer. Brazil subsequently purchased the vessels and the rights to the design. The remarkable thing about this decision is that the vessels are being built primarily to keep a ship yard busy and they will replace three River class offshore patrol vessels that were commissioned in 2003.


Photo Credit Benchill, Protector-class inshore patrol boat HMNZS Hawea (P3571) entering Otago Harbour, New Zealand

DefenseNews is reporting that New Zealand is considering disposing of two recently build Protector Class Inshore Patrol Vessels that entered service in only 2009 (similar to the Webber class FRCs) and building an additional much larger Offshore Patrol Vessel presumably a third Otago class.

What will happen to these five relatively new ships?

–Australia, in the middle of an alien migrant interdiction crisis, just had a fire on HMAS Bundaberg, a vessel very similar to the New Zealand Protector Class Inshore Patrol Vessels, that is likely to result in total loss. Perhaps they will take the excess New Zealand vessels, they were after all built in an Australian shipyard, but they really need something larger, perhaps the excess British River class.
–The Philippine Navy and Coast Guard also needs more modern patrol vessels to deal with Chinese incursions into their EEZ. The Philippine Coast Guard already has 56 meter vessels built in the same yard that made the New Zealand vessels but they could also use larger vessels like the Rivers.

New Research Center

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MaritimeExecutive reports,

“The Stevens Institute of Technology in the U.S. has been selected as the lead institution for a new Center of Excellence for Maritime Research (CMR). The selection, announced by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology (S&T) Directorate will provide Stevens with $2 million per year for five years. The center will also include the following partner institutions: MIT, University of Miami, Rutgers University, University of Puerto Rico and Elizabeth City State University. Stevens also has new partners with which it will collaborate on research projects, including LSU, Florida Atlantic University and the University of Connecticut.”

While I wonder if putting money into the Coast Guard’s own R&D Center, which is getting only a tiny fraction of the Department’s R&D budget, might not have been a better investment, I do find it promising that in making the announcement, Michael Bruno, Feiler Chair Professor and Dean of the School of Engineering and Science cited the Coast Guard as their “primary customer.” Reportedly Stevens already has a prior association with the DOD and NSA.

Thanks to Rex for the heads-up.

30mm Better Than 57mm?

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The MK46 Mod 1 weapon system fires a round during a live-fire qualification exercise aboard the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD-18). US NAvy Photo

The MK46 Mod 1 weapon system fires a round during a live-fire qualification exercise aboard the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD-18). US NAvy Photo

The Navy has apparently made a decision I find incomprehensible. They have decided to alter the DDG-1000 design, replacing the two 57mm Mk110 mounts (the same gun on the Bertholf class and projected for the OPC) with two 30mm Mk 46.

According to the US Naval Institute News,

“The Navy has replaced two 57mm guns planned on the Zumwalt-class guided missile destroyer designed to fight off swarm boat attacks with a smaller pair of 30mm guns, Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) told USNI News on Monday.”

and later,

“A follow on 2012 assessment using the latest gun and munition effectiveness information, concluded that the MK46 was more effective than the MK110 CIGS. Based on that assessment, approval was received to change from the MK 110 CIGS to the MK 46 Gun System. In addition to the increased capability, the change from MK110 to MK46 resulted in reduction in weight and significant cost avoidance, while still meeting requirements. DDG 1000 is planned to have two medium range MK46, 30mm Close-in Gun Systems that will provide a robust rapid fire capability and increased lethality against hostile surface targets approaching the ship.”

The Mk 46 mount uses the Mk44 30mm chain gun that is derived from the same 25mm chain gun used in the Mk38 mounts. It looks like a small tank turret, but I understand it is not armored. It can be remotely controlled or manned by an on mount operator.

Comparing the two weapons,

Range of the 57mm is four or five times the range of the 30mm.
Projectile weight of the 57mm is about six times that of the 30mm.
Rate of fire is similar, 220 for the 57mm and 200 to 250 for the 30mm.

The only advantage I see for the 30mm is that it has more ready ammunition on the mount (not sure how much but apparently at least twice the number of rounds meaning it should be able to fire twice as long without reloading).

Happy Coast Guard Day

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Happy Coast Guard Day to all who have worn the “true blue” and to all who wish them well. If you want to take a look back, you might check out the “Heritage” page. Meanwhile Grand Haven has been putting on its usual show of appreciation.

This year also marked the 75th anniversary of the formation of the Coast Guard Auxiliary. Probably one of the greatest bargain in the history of the US government.

Antarctic Land Rush?

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512px-Antarctica_CIA_svg
Photo credit: CIA

DefenseNews reports on the growing South American interest in Antarctica and the proliferation of polar ships that support these interests. The increased interest is fueled by anticipation that changes in the Antarctic Treaty system will allow resource exploitation.

If the current treaty is altered or abrogated, a number of nations have already made claims to Antarctic territory, held in abeyance by the current treaty. Some of these claims overlap. Interestingly neither the US or Russia has made any specific claims but have reserved the right to make them in the future. (Click on the map above to enlarge and see where the various stations are located.)

There is already much animosity between Argentina and the UK and between Argentina and Chile. The existing treaty system could breakdown at any time. This looks like another good argument for both a new Icebreaker and for bringing back the Polar Sea.
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CIMSEC–Narco Subs

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CIMSEC continues their series on “non-navies” with “Narco-Submarines: Drug Cartels’ Innovative Technology,” by Byron Ramirez. It provides an overview of the state of narco-sub development, employment, and countermeasures. It also announces the imminent publication of an unclassified study, “Narco-Submarines – Specially Fabricated Vessels Used For Drug Smuggling Purposes,” to be released by the Foreign Military Studies Office (FMSO).

Coasties in the Royal Navy

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Recently the “Coast Guard Compass” reported that an agreement had been struck with the Royal Navy that some Coast Guard enlisted volunteers (MKs and EMs) would be assigned accompanied tours on Royal Navy frigates.

I passed this along to a friend in the UK who blogs at “ThinkDefence.” He passed it along to his readerrship. I think you might find the comments interesting.

CIMSEC Talks Fisheries Crimes

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CIMSEC continues their “Non-Navy” discussion with “Fisheries Crime: Bridging the Conceptual Gap and Practical Response.”

They address more than just Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing. They talk about problems highlighted in a study conducted by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on transnational criminal activities in the fishing industry :

•Fishers trafficked for the purpose of forced labor on board fishing vessels are severely abused;
•There is frequency of child trafficking in the fishing industry;
•Transnational organized criminal groups are engaged in marine living resource crimes in relation to high value, low volume species such as abalone;
•Some transnational fishing operators launder illegally caught fish through transshipments at sea and fraudulent catch documentation;
•Fishing licensing and control system is vulnerable to corruption;
•Fishing vessels are used for the purpose of smuggling of migrants, illicit traffic in drugs (primarily cocaine), illicit traffic in weapons, and acts of terrorism; and
•Fishers are often recruited by organized criminal groups due to their skills and knowledge of the sea and are seldom masterminds behind organized criminal activities involving the fishing industry or fishing vessels.[1]

The Coast Guard is most likely to encounter these problems in the EEZ in the Western Pacific, including the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument that is expected to expanded and in the EEZs of friendly island nations that rely on the US to assist with enforcement. Unfortunately assets for enforcement in these areas have been extremely limited.