U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Munro (WMSL-755) crew members inspect a self-propelled semi-submersible on June 19, 2019, in international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean. US Coast Guard Photo
This post is part of a series of review stories looking back at the top naval news from 2019.
For the U.S. Coast Guard, 2019 was marked by big moves in the service’s two most significant programs – the start of the Polar Security Cutter and a delay of the Offshore Patrol Cutter program.
The Coast Guard Cutter Nathan Bruckenthal berthed before its commissioning ceremony in Alexandria, Virginia, July 25, 2018. The Bruckenthal was the 28th Sentinel-class Fast Response Cutter to be commissioned. Coast Guard photo
The House approved a $12 billion Fiscal Year 2020 funding deal that puts limitations on the Offshore Patrol Cutter program while moving ahead with funding for polar icebreakers, Fast Response Cutters and long-range surveillance aircraft. Read More
Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Karl Schultz meets with Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer and Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan in Nome and Port Clarence, Alaska to discuss the construction of deep-draft ports in western Alaska, Aug. 13, 2018. Coast Guard photo
WASHINGTON, D.C. – For now, the Coast Guard is focused on being sea-based in the high latitudes even as talk of building a deep-water Arctic port gains support in Washington.
USCGC Polar Star (WAGB-10) off McMurdo Sound near McMurdo Station, a United States Antarctic research center in 2018. US Air Force Photo
WASHINGTON, D.C. – For the next several years, the Coast Guard’s only heavy icebreaker will lead the annual Antarctic resupply mission as the service develops its new class of icebreaker.
An artist’s rendering of VT Halter Marine’s winning bid for the U.S. Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter. VT Halter Marine image used with permission
WASHINGTON, D.C. – By building a heavy icebreaker designed to both withstand the frigid waters and accommodate major maintenance needs, the Coast Guard hopes to avoid the catastrophic failures that have hamstrung the service’s polar missions for a nearly a decade. Read More
US Heavy Ice Breaker Polar Star (WAGB-10). US Coast Guard Photo
The U.S. Coast Guard’s polar icebreaking fleet will remain based in Seattle after delivery of its new class of heavy icebreakers.
An artist’s rendering of VT Halter Marine’s winning bid for the U.S. Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter. VT Halter Marine image used with permission
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. – The Coast Guard’s next icebreaker is based on a German research vessel, features a unique Finnish propulsion design and is driven by American diesels, shipbuilder VT Halter Marine told USNI News on Tuesday. Read More
A starboard view of the anchored US Coast Guard icebreaker POLAR STAR (WAGB 10).
NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. – The Coast Guard hopes to have its first three heavy icebreakers fielded by 2027 or 2028 to replace the one icebreaker that is increasingly struggling to make it to Antarctica and back each year and to increase U.S. presence in the high latitudes, the commandant said today. Read More
Ingalls Shipbuilding lands the 700-ton deckhouse on the amphibious assault ship Tripoli (LHA 7) on July 9, 2016. Ingalls Shipbuilding photo.
The U.S. Coast Guard offered industry the potential for a multi-ship, multi-year, multi-billion-dollar program in its heavy icebreaker competition – but funding uncertainties gave some of the nation’s largest shipbuilders cold feet when it came time to bid.
An artist’s rendering of VT Halter Marine’s winning bid for the U.S. Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter. VT Halter Marine image used with permission
This post has been updated to include a rendering of the VT Halter Marine bid and the names of the two other shipyards who bid for the Polar Security Cutter contract.
VT Halter Marine Inc. has been awarded a $745M detailed design and construction contract for the Coast Guard’s next-generation heavy icebreaker, according to a Tuesday Pentagon contract announcement. Read More
