The Acquisitions Directorate reports they have placed orders for

Twenty 29 foot Response Boat-Small (RB-S II) from Metal Shark Aluminum Boats of Jeanerette, La., valued at $6.6 million.  “This latest delivery order brings the total number of boats on order to 84.  To date, 41 RB-S IIs have been delivered to the Coast Guard.”

“Sixteen Cutter Boat-Over the Horizon-IVs (CB-OTH-IV) and associated parts and logistics information from SAFE Boats International LLC of Bremerton, Wash.  The cost of the order is $6.55 million.”

“Fourteen of the sixteen cutter boats from this order will be assigned to the FRC fleet (two to be used as spares).  Two of the cutter boats will be assigned to the NSC fleet.”

“Under the current contract, up to 101 OTH-IV cutter boats may be ordered over a seven year period.  The Coast Guard may order up to 71 boats, and the contract includes up to 10 boats for the U.S. Navy and up to 20 boats for Customs and Border Protection.  The contract has a cost ceiling of $58.9 million. “

Coast Guard members stand in formation during the funeral procession of retired Coast Guard Cmdr. Ray Evans at the Mountain View Funeral Home & Memorial Park in Lakewood, Wash., June 5, 2013. More than 350 Coast Guardsmen from local units attended the ceremony to honor the decorated WWII veteran. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Seaman Saladino)

I’m reprinting this news release virbatum:

Date: June 06, 2013, CG-09222, Contact: PACS Dan Tremper, Office: (202) 372-4644

Coast Guard Guadalcanal hero laid to rest

LAKEWOOD, Wash. – Retired U.S. Coast Guard Cmdr. Ray Evans, 92, was laid to rest Wednesday with full military honors.

Evans was the final Coast Guard survivor of a dramatic rescue of a group of Marines pinned down by machine gun fire during the Guadalcanal Campaign, September 1942 where he earned the Navy Cross.

Among those who attended the memorial service was his wife of more than 70 years Dorothy, his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren and Coast Guard Vice-Commandant Vice Adm. John Currier.

Members of the Marine Corps Security Force Battalion Bangor performed a three-volley salute at the funeral signifying the bond Evans and the Marine Corps have shared since the darkest days of World War II.

Evans joined the Coast Guard alongside Medal of Honor recipient Douglas Munro in September 1939.

“(I) Came out of high school and looked for a job all summer in 1939 and it was a very poor time for jobs and went to the Coast Guard and they said they had not taken a recruit in 7 years,”  said Evans in an oral history recorded in 1992.  “They called me back in September and said, ‘Are you still interested?   We’ve got seven openings.  I said, ‘yes I am’.  And that’s how it started, as an Apprentice Seaman at 21 dollars a month.”

After joint assignments that took Evans and Munro from Washington State to New York City, the two shipmates found themselves aboard the U.S. Army transport ship Hunter Liggett. It was during a trip to India, 250 miles south of Cape Town, South Africa on a quiet December morning in 1941, they heard over the radio that bombs had fallen on Pearl Harbor.

In less than a year Evans and Munro were reassigned as coxswain and crew of a Higgins boats that were responsible for transporting Marines to and from Guadalcanal.  In the Second Battle of the Matanikau, part of the Guadalcanal Campaign, after successfully taking Marines from the 1^st Battalion 7^th Marines 1^st Marine Division ashore, the two Coast Guardsmen returned to their previously assigned position.  Almost immediately, they learned that conditions ashore were different than had been anticipated and the Marines were surrounded by enemy Japanese forces on the beachhead.  It was necessary to evacuate the Marines immediately. Both men volunteered for the job and brought their boats to shore under heavy enemy fire, then proceeded to evacuate the men on the beach.

Evans remained at his post during the entire evacuation.  He maintained control of his boat with one hand on the wheel and continued to fire his weapon with the other until the last boat cleared the beach.  For his actions, Evans was awarded the Navy Cross.

Evans’ friend would not fare as well.  When the majority of the Marines were in the boats, complications arose in evacuating the last men, whom Munro realized would be in the greatest danger. He placed himself and his boats in such a way that they would serve as cover for the last men to leave.

“I saw that Doug was facing forward, and I was standing up by the coxswain looking back, I saw this line of waterspouts coming across the water, and I yelled at Doug to get down,” said Evans during his oral history.  “He couldn’t hear me over the engine noise, and it hit him.  It was one burst of fire.  And that’s how he died.  And that’s how it happened.”

Munro remained conscious long enough to say four words: “Did they get off?”

“He said ‘did they get off?’ and that’s about all he said.  And then he died.  I don’t think he ever heard me answer him.  It was very quick fortunately.  Can we talk about something else?” said Evans remembering his friend who had died many years before.

Evans remained humble about his contribution during his service on Guadalcanal.

“We just did a job,” said Evans.  “We were asked to take them over there, and we were asked to bring them back off of there, and that’s what we did.  That’s what the Coast Guard does.  We do what we’re asked to do.”

His humbleness turns to awe as he remembers the Marines and his close association with them so many years ago.

“Got to admire those guys,” said Evans.  “I really feel a great deal of pride that when they received the Presidential Unit Citation for Guadalcanal, First Marine Division, that they gave to all us Coast Guard that were there with ’em.  And that was, that was great.”

In 1962, Evans retired after 23 years of service in the Coast Guard and passed away peacefully in his home May 30, 2013.  And though another chapter of a heroic World War II veteran has closed, his sacrifices will never be forgotten.

For imagery from Cmdr Evans’ memorial service please click here: http://www.dvidshub.net/image/947110/cmdr-ray-evans-memorial

For Cmdr Evans’ 1992 oral history, please click here: http://www.uscg.mil/history/weboralhistory/Ray_Evans_Video_Interview.asp

Members of the Marine Corps Security Force Battalion Bangor perform a three-volley salute at the funeral of retired Coast Guard Cmdr. Ray Evans at the Mountain View Funeral Home & Memorial Park in Lakewood, Wash., June 5, 2013. Evans retired from the Coast Guard after 23 years of service. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Katelyn Tyson.

The USNI (US Naval Institute) News is reporting a new document release from the Congressional Research Service regarding the Coast Guard’s Icebreakers. You can read it here.

A cursory look suggest there is relatively little new here, but it certainly provides in depth background of the choices before Congress and how we got this far.

There are a number of Coast Guard related groups on Facebook. Bob Connelly who is active on the Coast Guard Aviation page https://www.facebook.com/groups/cgaviation/ and the Coast Guard retired page https://www.facebook.com/groups/97743292523/ sent me this listing of those including “USCGC”. https://www.facebook.com/search/results.php?q=uscgc&type=groups&init=quick&tas=0.6764054787345231

The Coast Guard has issued its “Arctic Strategy.” It is a 48 page pdf. I have added it to the reference section, and you can see it here:

Coast Guard Arctic Strategy, 2013

“The U.S. Coast Guard Arctic Strategy documents our intent to pursue three key objectives: Improving Awareness, Modernizing Governance, and Broadening Partnerships.”

This aligns with the National Strategy for the Arctic Region  which specifically calls for

• Enhance Arctic Domain Awareness – We seek to improve our awareness of activities, conditions, and trends in the Arctic region that may affect our safety, security, environmental, or commercial interests. The United States will endeavor to appropriately enhance sea, air, and space capabilities as Arctic conditions change, and to promote maritime-related information sharing with international, public, and private sector partners, to support implementation of activities such as the search-and-rescue agreement signed by Arctic states.
• Preserve Arctic Region Freedom of the Seas – The United States has a national interest in preserving all of the rights, freedoms, and uses of the sea and airspace recognized under international law. We will enable prosperity and safe transit by developing and maintaining sea, under-sea, and air assets and necessary infrastructure. In addition, the United States will support the enhancement of national defense, law enforcement, navigation safety, marine environment response, and search-and-rescue capabilities. Existing international law provides a comprehensive set of rules governing the rights, freedoms, and uses of the world’s oceans and airspace, including the Arctic. The law recognizes these rights, freedoms, and uses for commercial and military vessels and aircraft. Within this framework, we shall further develop Arctic waterways management regimes, including traffic separation schemes, vessel tracking, and ship routing, in collaboration with partners. We will also encourage other nations to adhere to internationally accepted principles. This cooperation will facilitate strategic partnerships that promote innovative, low-cost solutions that enhance the Arctic marine transportation system and the safe, secure, efficient and free flow of trade.

The national strategy also repeatedly calls for various forms of partnerships and like the Coast Guard’s own strategy calls for the US to accede to the UNCLOS treaty.

If you have been paying attention to the Arctic Shield Exercises I don’t think you will find much unexpected in the stratgey. (More on Arctic Shield here.)

The Coast Guard does not expect to make major investments in infrastructure in the Arctic for at least ten years, and will undertake to serve the region with mobile assets–ships and seasonal assignment of aircraft.

The use of mobile assets and seasonal presence, supplemented by existing shore-based infrastructure, will be the preferred strategy for Coast Guard operations during periods of peak activity.

The strategy is light on specifics, we are reminded it is a strategy, not an implementation plan, but there are three specific items called for that will require additional funding:

• A new heavy icebreaker
• An Arctic Fusion Center to advance Maritime Domain Awareness, and
• An Arctic Center of Expertise at the Academy

The Projected environment:

This strategy assumes that recent decreases in Arctic ice mass will continue over the next 10 years. Even so, while previously unreachable areas will be increasingly open to vessel traffic, the remaining permanent ice cover, the continued winter ice cover, and hazards from ice floes and smaller ice remnants will continue to pose challenges to regional civilian, industrial, and military operations. Through efforts to discover and exploit offshore oil and gas reserves, the energy industry will deploy oil rigs, offshore supply vessels, barges, and tankers in Arctic waters. Cruise ship traffic will increase in areas that are unique and of commercial value to the recreational tourism industry, often in areas that are remote and challenging to render aid. The three strategic priorities of this Arctic strategy draw upon the Coast Guard’s strengths as a  military, multi-mission, maritime service, leveraging authorities and partnerships, flexible operational capabilities, and relevant expertise within the international community to achieve an integrated, coherent approach to maritime operations and regional governance.

Improving Awareness:

The U.S. government requires effective understanding of maritime activity in the Arctic region in order to enforce maritime sovereignty and address threats as early as possible. Accurate awareness requires greater collection and sharing of maritime data, as well as increased cooperation in analyzing and disseminating near-real-time information. The Coast Guard will work with DHS, Department of Defense, other interagency partners, state, tribal, and local governments, the private sector, advocacy groups, academia, and the international community to improve maritime intelligence and information-sharing. Improvements require proper infrastructure for sensing, collecting, fusing, analyzing, and disseminating information. Improved awareness is critical for ensuring preparedness to respond to contingencies and is consistent with strategic priorities delineated in the National Strategy for Maritime Security and the National Plan to Achieve Maritime Domain Awareness. As long as there is maritime activity in the Arctic, the Coast Guard must maintain appropriate presence to monitor, regulate, and respond to threats and hazards. Effective presence on shore and at sea enables the awareness necessary to focus resources on highest risks and threats.

Modernizing Governance:

The safety, security, and economic well-being of the United States rely upon sound governance of the world’s oceans. To advance U.S. interests in the region, the Coast Guard must work with other Federal, state, tribal, and local government entities, international counterparts, relevant industries, and other stakeholders to promote maritime safety, security, and environmental responsibility in the Arctic region. Notable efforts include active participation in international organizations, such as the Arctic Council and the International Maritime Organization, and continued support of accession to the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Broadening Partnerships:

Limited operational resources and expanding maritime risks underline the need for increasing collaboration in the region. The Coast Guard must foster domestic and international partnerships to specifically increase coordination, enhance efficiency, and reduce risk. Mutually beneficial relationships with and among our international, interagency, state, tribal, local, and other partners are essential for mission success. The Coast Guard must also collaborate with academia and non-governmental partners to incentivize Arctic research and expand the base of Arctic-related literature.

The Video: The Commandant introduced the new strategy at a meeting of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. You can watch the Video here.

If you have read the strategy there is nothing new in the prepared remarks but you might still want to watch the Q & A beginning at approx 25:30.

Commentary:

g Captain is reporting traffic on Russia’s Arctic Northern Sea route may experience a 30 fold increase in the next eight years. Much of that will pass close to US territory during the transit between the Arctic and Pacific Oceans. While the Coast Guard may not be ready to invest in new infrastructure it is not too early to start evaluating where it should be.

—Growing the Infrastructure:

The Coast Guard’s go slow approach (at least partly dictated by funding) is in contrast to the aggressive development by its Russian counterpart. Perhaps ironically the former socialist republic see this as a profit making opportunity, charging fees for transit of the route.

As the Commandant noted in the video the US has had reason to develop Arctic infrastructure before. Much work was done in support of the Distant Early Warning Network (DEW Line)  when the US was concerned about Soviet bombers attacking the US via polar routes. Perhaps some of this infrastructure can be reactivated.

The Coast Guard might consider working with Navy SeaBees in the Arctic Shield exercises, to complete small dual use infrastructure projects that might serve both the Coast Guard and local economic development. Even a little work each year could result in substantial cumulative improvement considering the extremely limited facilities currently available. It could serve both as training for the Seabees in operating in the Arctic, and resource development for the Coast Guard at minimal cost.

I also wonder about the current state of the former Naval Air Station Adak.

—A Footnote:

Members of Congress from Alaska are interested in creation of a deepwater port in the Arctic.

The Alaska Native News in reporting on the prospects for the Coast Guard Reauthorization Act noted that it included a provision, “Requiring the Coast Guard to consult with other federal, state and local entities to determine what improvements are necessary to make the ice-free harbor at St. George, Alaska a fully functional harbor throughout the year.”

Photo: St. George Island Harbor, part of airport visible in the foreground. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Digital Visual Library

The island is somewhat centrally located in the Bering sea, on the continental shelf, about 376 miles NE of Adak, about 194 miles NNW of Dutch, but still almost 550 miles south of the Bering Strait. It has a population of about 160 and is roughly a triangle with its long side running East West. The longest distance across the island running almost exactly East/West is less than 13 statute miles.The small harbor and 4,980 foot runway are on the South West side less than three statute miles from the village of St. George located on approximately at the center of the North side of the triangle.

Nearby St. Paul appears to have better facilities, and there was at one time a Coast Guard LORAN-C transmitter station on St. Paul.

You can get a pretty good feel for what the island is like here and here. Still If we were looking for a place to put a Fast Response Cutter in the Bering Sea, it might work.