USCGC STRATTON
Huntington Ingalls Industries has begun fabrication on the sixth of a planned eight Legend-class National Security Cutters for the U.S. Coast Guard on Tuesday, according to the company. Read More
The U.S. Coast Guard has exercised a $250.7 million contract option to buy six more Sentinel-class Fast Response Cutters (FRCs), according to a Wednesday announcement from the service. Read More
Divers, assigned to Mobile Diving Salvage Unit 2, Company 2-4, wait on the diving stage to be lowered into the water during air surface supplied diving operations off the coast of Virginia on Aug. 16, 2013. US Navy Photo
Navy salvage divers have recovered the flight data recorder and pieces of an Air Guard F-16C that crashed Aug. 1 after a mid-air collision, according to a Tuesday release from the service.
Divers from Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit (MDSU) 2 aboard the USNS Grasp (T-ARS-51) recovered the debris after almost a weeklong search from under 107 feet of water. Diving operations were completed on Monday, according to the statement. Read More
Today, America’s Coast Guard is in drastic need of reinvention.
For generations, the service has struggled to field adequate manpower and the cutters, boats and aircraft needed to perform all of its mandated missions, all while wrestling with increasing responsibilities. Read More
The following is the Capital Investment Plan and Unfunded Priority List for the U.S. Coast Guard issued on July 24, 2013. Read More
A US Coast Guard HH-60 Jayhawk. US Coast Guard
An Air National Guard flier is in the hospital with minor injuries after two F-16Cs collided in mid-air late Thursday night, officials with the 113th Wing D.C. Air National Guard told USNI News on Friday.
Seaman Apprentice Robert Nunez, left, from Suffolk, Va., and Seaman Apprentice Amy M. Haskins, from Kansas City, Mo., stand watch on the signal bridge aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN-68). US Navy Photo
As I consider the likely national security issues facing the United States in the coming decade, I am struck by the decidedly maritime character of these challenges. From China’s rapid naval modernization to Iran’s threat to close the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping, the United States is increasingly facing a security environment requiring robust naval and air forces.
While the previous decade was characterized by the predominance of large ground forces, I firmly believe that the next decade will be defined by the strength of our sea power and projection forces. Read More
C/V Carnival Splendor along side a Mexican Navy ship in 2010. US Navy Photo
The following is from the executive summary of the June 24, 2013 U.S. Coast Guard Report: Report of Investigation into the Fire Onboard the CARNIVAL SPLENDOR which occurred in the Pacific Ocean off the Coast of Mexico on November 8, 2010, which Resulted in Complete Loss of Power.
On November 8, 2010 at 0600 (Local Time), the Carnival Splendor was underway off the coast of Mexico when the vessel suffered a major mechanical failure in the number five diesel generator. As a result, engine components, lube oil and fuel were ejected through the engine casing and caused a fire at the deck plate level between generators five and six in the aft engine room which eventually ignited the cable runs overhead. The fire in the cable runs was relatively small, but produced a significant volume of smoke which hampered efforts to locate and extinguish it. In addition, the fire caused extensive damage to the cables in the aft engine room, which contributed to the loss of power. Read More
The following is from Congressional Research Service’s Ronald O’Rourke June 26, 2013 testimony before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Coast Guard Acquisition.
The Coast Guard’s FY2014 Five Year (FY2014-FY2018) CIP includes a total of about $5.1 billion in acquisition funding, which is about $2.5 billion, or about 33%, less than the total of about $7.6 billion that was included in the Coast Guard’s FY2013 Five Year (FY2013-FY2017) CIP. (In the four common years of the two plans—FY2014-FY2017—the reduction in funding from the FY2013 CIP to the FY2014 CIP is about $2.3 billion, or about 37%.) This is one of the largest percentage reductions in funding that I have seen a five-year acquisition account experience from one year to the next in many years.
About twenty years ago, in the early 1990s, Department of Defense (DOD) five-year procurement plans were reduced sharply in response to the end of the Cold War—a large-scale change in the strategic environment that led to a significant reduction in estimated future missions for U.S. military forces. In contrast to that situation, there has been no change in the Coast Guard’s strategic environment since last year that would suggest a significant reduction in estimated future missions for the Coast Guard. Read More
The following is from the July, 3 2013 Congressional Research Service report, Coast Guard Cutter Procurement: Background and Issues for Congress.
This report provides background information and potential oversight issues for Congress on the Coast Guard’s programs for procuring 8 National Security Cutters (NSCs), 25 Offshore Patrol Cutters (OPCs), and 58 Fast Response Cutters (FRCs). These 91 planned cutters are intended as replacements for 90 aging Coast Guard cutters and patrol craft. The Coast Guard began procuring NSCs and FRCs a few years ago, and the first few NSCs and FRCs are now in service. Read More
