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Even one of the oldest and most honored federal agencies can confront a year of profound change, uncertainty, and stress. The year 1987 was in many respects such a time for the U. S. Coast Guard. It was also a year of significant challenges and opportunities for the nation’s smallest armed force. As the principal U. S. maritime law enforcement agency and foremost marine safety organization, the Coast Guard remained inexorably linked to the fortunes of the United States as a leading maritime country.
Few Americans realize the relatively small size of the Coast Guard and yet the presence of its personnel worldwide. In 1987, 37,971 active-duty military personnel and 5,427 civilians served within the multimission Coast Guard organization. Also, 12,864 Coast Guard reservists and 32,500 auxiliarists routinely made important contributions to the Coast Guard’s international and domestic maritime responsibilities. During the year Coast Guard men and women operated cutters and aircraft globally—throughout the Caribbean and Pacific, in the Arctic and Antarctic, in the North and South Atlantic, and on all U. S. waters. Electronic navigation stations, both LORAN- C and OMEGA, were manned and maintained by Coast Guard personnel throughout the world. Coast Guard marine inspectors visited U. S. commercial ships throughout the Orient and Europe, while Coast Guard Mobile Training Teams visited 20 nations to provide intensive training in all mission areas.
The Year in Statistics
The statistics for Coast Guard operating programs in 1987 provide a “global” view of the service’s extraordinary range of functions:
► Search and Rescue: The Coast Guard logged 68,087 responses to incidents; saved 6,638 lives; rendered assistance to 137,195 persons in distress; saved $995 million in property; assisted in protecting $2.4 billion worth of property.
►Enforcement of Laws and Treaties: Cutters operated for 215,810 hours on general law enforcement and 56,231 hours on fisheries enforcement duties; Coast Guard aircraft flight hours for general law enforcement and fisheries en
forcement were 26,519 and 5,791 respectively; Coast Guard units seized 136 vessels in drug-related cases and 16 vessels for violations of U. S. fisheries laws; other agencies seized another 18 vessels with Coast Guard assistance.
► Marine Safety, Inspection, and Licensing: The Coast Guard inspected 200 new, U. S.-built vessels, as well as 35,622 U. S.- and 2,677 foreign-flag commercial vessels; conducted 9,808 marine investigations of casualties; issued 35,369 licenses to merchant marine officers and more than 26,000 seaman’s documents.
►Marine and Recreational Boating Safety: Coast Guard personnel conducted more than 900 factory visits and inspections; the Coast Guard Auxiliary enrolled 330,000 in its boating education courses and conducted more than 280,000 courtesy marine examinations.
► Marine Environmental Protection: Coast Guard personnel investigated 7,435 oil spills and 847 hazardous chemical spills; the service monitored the cleanup of 1,820 oil and 158 chemical spills by the responsible parties; the Coast Guard also supervised 217 oil and 37 chemical spill cleanup operations that were federally funded.
►Marine Environmental Protection and Port Safety and Security: The Coast Guard monitored 8,080 transfer operations and inspected more than 4,000 waterfront facilities; conducted 23,558 harbor patrols nationwide; conducted 903 safety and security zone patrols; inspected 1,114 communist bloc vessels under the special interest vessel program; Coast Guard regular and reserve personnel conducted 82 mobilization exercises and 138 contingency drills.
► Aids to Navigation: Coast Guard personnel maintained 25,551 floating aids and 23,526 fixed aids on U. S. waters; authorized 43,835 private navigation aids; operated 37 LORAN-C stations in the United States and foreign locations, as well as eight OMEGA stations—two in the United States and six with host partner nations. The number of ship transits under vessel traffic services in 1987 was 963,767.
► Ice Operations: Polar icebreakers deployed 551 days to arctic and antarctic waters in support of a wide range of U. S. national polar programs. They assisted 15
vessels in domestic icebreaking opera tions on the Great Lakes and along tacj East Coast. The Coast Guard also plotte and tracked 686 icebergs within the Inter national Ice Patrol area off the Gran Banks.
The Budget __ ^
The fiscal year 1987 Coast Guard aP^ propriation was $2.87 billion, including $275 million the Congress transferred the Coast Guard from the Department o Defense budget ($200 million for ne acquisitions and $75 million for operating expenses). Of the service’s total budget^ 66% was tied to the operating expenses o all Coast Guard programs. The rest of1 budget funded retired pay (11.8%)- ne, acquisitions (17.4%), research and deve opment (.7%), reservist training (2.2%f and several small funds for pollution,1 Coast Guard Yard near Baltimore. an boat safety.
of
One of the most effective ways to
look
at the changing character of the Coa^ Guard is to examine operating expe"s^ for a discrete period. Table 1 compare^ appropriations for operating expenses1 fiscal years 1982 and 1987, reveal"1* subtle but significant changes. Three pt0
grams clearly dominate the op®
rah11?
iefl‘
budget—search and rescue, enforce*1^ of laws and treaties, and aids to nav'F tion. In 1982 these garnered 70.5% 01 a
^ 11 1987
Coast Guard operating funds. By their total share had increased to 75 > '
but a single program, law enforcerncn
received the entire increase of nef0^ 12%. Defense readiness showed a sbS increase in its share during the same P
riod, but law enforcement is the c e .
CoaS de-
“winner.” The other five major Guard programs experienced a net crease in share. These trends appear ^ reflect the priorities of the current Co' mandant, Admiral Paul A. Yost, Jr- - intriguing question is whether they a represent a longer term, more fundam^
tal change in the Coast Guard’s miss'1 During the closing months of 1987 1 Coast Guard faced another “crisis’ get for the coming year—one that is e erting extraordinary stress on the en organization. Simply put, the service j
a shortfall of $103 million in opera1 expenses for 1988 The Coast Guard
lunvjiug, win
f()rne'- A shortfall of $103 million could pep6 the agency to cut more than 1,000 cl(v°nne*’ decommission ships, and j^e s°me stations.
qun toe President’s budget re-
e!>ted $1,964 billion in operating ex- q0Ses f°r the Coast Guard. However, •ion^eSS aPProPr*ated only $1,789 bil- T0 offVin? a shortfall °f $175 million. han°i”Set t*1's’ Congress used “sleight of 1[0t0 transfer an additional $103 mil- Cor°m the Defense Department to the ljQast.Guard. Of this amount, $100 mil- cha *S *°r suPPort-in-kind—no funds eXcn®e accounts but the Coast Guard is pli Used from reimbursing DoD for sup- shoSf n<^ ^Ue*' "Ehe rematoing $72 million n aH increased to $103 million with
U S COAST GUARD (J. GUZMAN)
the addition of two unanticipated costs— a 1 January 1988 pay raise for Coast Guard personnel costing $14 million and $17 million needed to cover the increased cost of foreign parts that resulted from the devaluation of the dollar overseas. If sufficient funds are not restored to the service’s budget, Coast Guard operations could be significantly curtailed in 1988.
Maritime Law Enforcement
Enforcing the nation’s laws and treaties is the oldest of the Coast Guard’s duties, dating from 1790 when the government formed the Revenue Cutter Service to suppress smuggling along the Atlantic Coast. Coast Guard cutters and aircraft today conduct extensive patrols to enforce international agreements and federal laws on and over the high seas and waters over which the United States exercises jurisdiction. The service’s enforcement mission includes inspecting domestic and foreign fishing vessels in the 200-nautical mile U. S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and working to stop drug smuggling by air and sea, illegal immigration, hijacking or theft of vessels, and other unlawful activities. The Coast Guard also assists other agencies in enforcing U. S. laws. Today, maritime law enforcement is the most visible of Coast Guard programs, primarily because of the Reagan administration’s intensive drug interdiction efforts.
The Coast Guard’s employment of cutters and aircraft in 1987 reflected this emphasis on maritime law enforcement. Cutter operating hours on general law enforcement missions rose by 19.8%. Aircraft flight hours increased 36.6%, because the Coast Guard had more aircraft available and is putting greater emphasis on an air-interdiction strategy. Even the employment of Coast Guard units on fisheries enforcement duties fared well. Cutter employment on fisheries patrols increased 20.6%, while aircraft hours for these patrols remained virtually identical to the 1986 level.
Interdiction statistics for 1987 were consistent with the overall trends since 1982. Table 2 illustrates the continuing decline in the amount of marijuana the Coast Guard has interdicted during the past four years (2.8 million pounds in
Table 1 Appropriations for Major Programs in Fiscal Years 1982 and 1987'
FY 1982 % of FY 1987 % of Net %
Program Appropriation Total Appropriation Total Change
Search and Rescue defense Readiness Enforcement of Laws and Treaties Marine Safety2
Marine Environmental Protection3 Aids to Navigation toe Operations
Totals
$ 397.1 | 26.8 | $ 408.8 | 21.6 | -5.2 |
77.3 | 5.2 | 107.2 | 5.7 | + .5 |
306.2 | 20.7 | 618.7 | 32.6 | + 11.9 |
128.0 | 8.6 | 126.1 | 6.7 | -1.9 |
145.4 | 9.8 | 134.0 | 7.1 | -2.7 |
341.2 | 23.0 | 409.5 | 21.6 | -1.4 |
86.7 | 5.9 | 91.0 | 4.8 | -1.1 |
$1,481.9 |
| $1,895.3 |
|
|
sa£‘rating expenses are in millions of dollars and include all funds for operating and maintaining multipurpose vessels, aircraft, and shore units, and for personnel
v!ui|es Commercial Vessel Safety and Recreational Boating Safety programs. udes Marine Environmental Response and Port Safety and Security programs.
fish
In 1987 an average of 139 foreign
1984 to a low of 1.3 million pounds in 1987). In contrast, as Table 3 shows, Coast Guard interdictions of cocaine have jumped precipitously to 14,000 pounds in 1987—the service’s largest yearly total. Cocaine seizures in which Coast Guard units assisted other agencies were also significantly higher in 1987. U. S. Navy assistance to the Coast Guard’s drug en
forcement program peaked this past year: Coast Guard law enforcement detachments (LEDets) assigned to Navy ships deployed in the Caribbean seized 20 vessels. Timely sightings by Navy P-3 aircraft on patrol resulted in four other vessel seizures.
Coast Guard units throughout the Caribbean interdicted 3,541 illegal Haitian
migrants in 1987—a record yearly total and repatriated them in Port-au-Prince by agreement with the Haitian government Since 1981 the Coast Guard has inter' dieted 14,555 illegal migrants from - nations, 13,424 of them from Haiti.
ing vessels per month entered the U. S- EEZ. (The average was 254 during fisca
Waging the War on Drugs
That we are not winning the war on drugs is obvious. Supplies of marijuana and cocaine are plentiful, and production of both drugs remains unchecked. While the trend of drug usage by U. S. citizens may be down a bit, the demand for drugs in this country is high. What, then, has been the result of our considerable effort to stop the flow of illicit drugs into the country?
Five or six years ago, the profile of the typical “druggie” vessel was something like the following: a former fishing vessel, now streaked with rust . . . some gear or rigging still carried, but quite obviously not recently used ... 65 to 75 feet in length ... a crew of eight to ten males. The drug runners stowed bales of marijuana in every nook and cranny, and even left some in plain view. Coast Guardsmen on cutters approaching such a vessel from downwind could literally smell the marijuana even before boarding to conduct an inspection. These smugglers sometimes would greet our boarding parties with their bags packed and “muster” without a command being issued!
Today, only a small percentage of seizures involve vessels that carry the contraband in so obvious a fashion. Typical of today’s drug-running vessels are hidden compartments: false bulkheads, double hulls, false keels, compartments inside fuel or water tanks, compartments welded to the external hull or keel, containers strung beneath the hull (sometimes equipped to be jettisoned, in the event they are about to be discovered or, perhaps, as a method of “delivery” at a precise location for later recovery). The advent of ingenious secret stowage schemes, which represent the considerable costs associated with installing them, is irrefutable evidence
that at-sea interdictions were hitting the narco-traffickers where it counts with them.
While we know our current efforts have, for certain periods, resulted in the seizing of 60% or more of the marijuana some trafficking organizations were smuggling, we do not know our overall success rate. Some politicians and government number crunchers seek a formula to translate effort expended into results achieved, but they will not find it. 1 think our maritime interdiction rate for marijuana is somewhere between 2050%; I have no such estimate for cocaine, but it must be very small.
Narco-trafficker organizations are businesses, with profit (greed) the only concern. There are production, packaging, transportation, and distribution networks. Large shipments of cocaine are assembled from several sources to minimize the potential loss (by interdiction) to any one supplier. These “businessmen” can, and do, afford the best of communications gear. They have counterintelligence capabilities, exploiting signal and human intelligence sources. They quickly devise new tactics to counter our efforts.
One method of smuggling that is becoming more prevalent (or, perhaps, we are just becoming more aware of it) is the shipping of drugs in cargo containers, mixed among or hidden in legitimate cargo, behind false walls and ceilings, even, for cocaine, inserted in the hollow metal frames of the container structures themselves! Hundreds of thousands of containers enter U. S. ports annually (more than 250,000 in South Florida alone), and Customs Service (CS) inspections are manpower intensive. Only a very small percentage of the overall container traffic can be inspected.
Use of private aircraft is common among the narco-traffickers, with deliveries made either to land sites or to boats at sea. While the interdiction steps required remain the same (detect, identify, escort, and apprehend), the time available is short, and close coordination amonf the participating enforcement elements is vital to success. A typ>ca scenario could involve: Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, Customs, or Coast Guard detector assets; Federa Aviation Agency (FAA) flight services; Coast Guard or Customs escort aircraft; Army, Coast Guard, Customs, or Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) apprehension helicopters carrying DEA and Royal Bahamas Strike Force (RBSF) p0' lice officers. If the air-drop is mad1- to a boat in or near Bahamian waters, additional coordination could include a Coast Guard patrol boat (sometimes carrying a Royal Bahamas Defense Force [RBDF] rider)’ or RBDF boat (sometimes carrymS a Coast Guard rider), a Customs Service boat with U. S. Coast Guardsmen and Bahamian police >n the crew, or a Navy missile patrol hydrofoil (PHM) with a Coast Guard law enforcement detachmet^ (LEDet) on board. (As this is beitU written, a three-month deploymeth of PHMs to Grenada is half over, LEDets are part of the crews of m2 Navy’s Aries [PHM-5], Taurus [PHM-3], and Gemini [PHM-6])- . All such coordination would be if tiated and monitored through three operations watch-center facilities. C3I (Customs Service and Coast Guard); Seventh Coast Guard Djs' trict Operations Center in Miami, and OPBAT (DEA and Coast Guard) in the U. S. Embassy in Nassau. (OPBAT stands for Opcra tions Bahamas and Turks and Caicos, a DEA-directed program
Tw, This steady decline reflects
. • reductions of foreign fishing adoptions within the EEZ. As domestic phing concerns have replaced foreign nes, the Coast Guard has correspond- P increased its boardings of U. S. Is Ing vessels. Coast Guard personnel I’nductcd 2,414 fishing vessel boardings tne U. S. EEZ during fiscal year 1987, issuing 96 written warnings and 349 civil penalties.
Highlights of 1987 Operations
Coast Guardsmen work at complex marine operations that require extraordinary professional expertise and skill. Their duties are diverse and routinely hazardous. The following cases— selected from among the thousands of operational missions Coast Guard units performed in 1987—illustrate this diversity and the dangers, as well as the growing trend for the Coast Guard to coordinate with other agencies, especially in the effort to interdict drugs.
► Icebreaking in Antarctica: In one of
■umy area of responsibility con- ,irne'S u steac*y decline. At the same mere is less marijuana avail-
By Rear Admiral H.
able locally and the price is nearly double what it was two years ago.
That signifies success, though certainly we claim no final victory.
The cocaine news is bad. Although more is being interdicted, availability has never been greater nor the price lower. We believe the majority is smuggled into the country by private aircraft, plus commercial maritime methods under the cover of legitimate trade. Although some marijuana is similarly transported, the percentage is much lower.
Do we have enough resources?
Certainly not. And the effect of the fiscal year 1988 funding cut in the Coast Guard’s operation expense account was an immediate 55% reduction in scheduled patrols by our cutters; meaning less than half the routine presence in the choke points and throughout my area of responsibility. Between 70% and 90% of our interdictions result from “cold hits”—i.e., a routine patrol detecting and boarding a boat, without prior specific intelligence information. 1 imagine we will detect and seize in proportionate numbers to what we would normally have interdicted. Navy support capability has also been reduced.
Again, remember that we have no measure of effectiveness to show the impact of any specific change.
We may even see an increase in the amounts of marijuana and/or cocaine seized in the maritime zones, in spite of the drastically reduced law enforcement presence. Why? Because the odds for a successful transit have improved. If the drugs become more available, we are losing the war.
As in any major conflict, to win takes aggressive efforts on all fronts:
► Eradication at the source—i.e., the crops, processing plants, and “management”
DFaV*n^ ^oast Guard, Army, and q '' helicopters sited at Nassau,
DP°4^et0Wn’ anc* F|ecPort t0 carry w'th- ant* RBSF apprehension teams ro‘ hln Bahamian territory.) To cUat* out the possibilities, we also .°eu|d have a SEABAT deployed— with 3 • B. Coast Guard helicopter
be anc* RBSF team mem-
nJS' °Perating on the high seas q ar Bahamian waters from either a ast Guard or Navy ship. qu °.much for the uninformed who C()CSti0n cooPeration! As the senior y ast Guard officer in the southeast iiti States, * am responsible for P ementing the provisions of for- vicCoa« Guard and Customs Ser- asse dements and guidelines that roipn Coast Guard the lead agency eff 111 maritime interdiction •i r[s- A very close working rela- to th ^ W*t*1 t*lc *~*- B- Ambassador rj e Bahamas, in addition to expe- in oT <“oast Guard watchstanders f0r BAT’s operation center, allow p 9Ulck identification of problems, ou.s 6r soutB. we maintain continu- YU Presence in the waters of the $ag atan Ghannel, Windward Pas- quf anc* Mona Passage, with fre- (leent SUrges of heightened activity B Per into the Caribbean using Qu^'iient of Defense and Coast yer resources. For more than a Nay n°W’ a sclua(*re>n of U. S.
Ports p B11**5” periodically re- dje.S *0r duty involving drug inter- Co- °n *n Caribbean waters. With a °ne h ^uart* CEDet on board, each of aas toe jurisdictional capability sUpo 0ast Guard cutter. Year-round DrJ 0rt *or maritime surveillance is Pov'dedby Navy P-3s. to *)W.are we doing? With regard totalariJUana’ 9u'te well. The annual sea . amount of marijuana seized at
diUes
th
B. Thorsen, U. S. Coast Guard
► Sustained interdiction efforts in departure, transit, and arrival zones
► Punishment of traffickers, including incarceration and seizures of assets to strip them of ill-gotten gains
► Punishment of those who buy and use the drugs—i.e., hold people accountable for breaking the law
► Research into the physical and mental consequences of drug use
► Education of the population that informs and enlightens to reduce the demand
Victory on this last front will win the war, if we hold our own everywhere else. (Helping existing addicts is included in the last two fronts.)
Despite the frustrations, notwithstanding the long boring hours patrolling in search of an enemy unconstrained by the rules of law, the young men and women who so proudly wear the uniforms of the sea services remain eager and steadfast in performing the drug enforcement task. Each drug bust elicits a strong sense of accomplishment, a victory over those who threaten our national security. Each green leaf or white snowflake painted on the stack or bridge wing of a Coast Guard ship represents a threat to our way of life. Each red “X” superimposed upon those symbols proclaims, "Not on my watch!"
But before we win this war on drugs some things must change. The people of our great country must show the necessary resolve. We have not faced up to the obvious need for a truly national effort. Too many ignore this plague and its threat to the very fiber of our society. And too many lend only lip service—calling it a war does not make it one.
Admiral Thorsen is Commander Seventh Coast Guard District
L
26,000
24.000
22.0 20,000 18,000 16,000
14.0 ' 12,000
10.0 8,000 6,000
4.000
2.0 0
Cocaine Weight in Lbs
Coast Guard Seizures
Coast Guard Assistint’
^LU
1984 1985 1986 t?87
1982 1983 1984 1985 1986
an engine room explosion and fire 1 •
lOO
lies
the most difficult break-ins in recent memory, from 8-17 January the USCGC Polar Sea (WAGB-11) broke through first-year ice up to seven feet thick and second-year ice up to 11 feet thick to open Winter Quarters Bay in McMurdo Sound. The icebreaker was participating in 1987 Operation Deep Freeze under the operational control of Commander Naval Support Force Antarctica. Overall fast- ice conditions this past shipping season were the region’s worst ever, with the fast-ice edge extending 31 nautical miles off the McMurdo U. S. station when the season began. The Polar Sea later escorted the tanker Gus A. Darnell and the cargo vessel Green Wave into Winter Quarters Bay.
► Rescue in Cuban Waters: On 10 February the cutter Ute (WMEC-76) and two Air Station Clearwater HC-130 aircraft assisted the 40-foot U. S. fishing vessel Six Kids as she took on water through a shaft packing gland ten miles south of Cabo San Antonio, Cuba. Because the distress was threatening the lives of the five crewmen on board the vessel, the Coast Guard required no permission from Cuba to enter Cuban airspace to assist them. The first aircraft entered Cuban airspace and dropped pumps while the Seventh Coast Guard District in Miami notified the Cuban government. Once dewatering was in progress, the vessel got under way en route to its home port of Key West, Florida. Still in Cuban waters and running out of gas for the dewatering pumps, the Six Kids again became disabled. A second HC-130 aircraft entered Cuban airspace and vectored the cutter Ute to the scene. The Ute entered Cuban waters, placed a rescue and assistance team on board, and later took the vessel in tow to Key West.
► Helicopter Rescue of Soviet Seamen: In one of the more dramatic rescue missions in recent Coast Guard history, on 14 March three Air Station Cape Cod HH-3F helicopters safely evacuated 37 Soviet crewmen from the sinking vessel Komsomolets Kirgizii. En route to Havana, Cuba, the 482-foot Soviet ship foundered 220 miles east of Delaware Bay when her 10,292-ton cargo of flour shifted in 20-foot seas. A 26° list eventually increased to 40°, requiring immediate evacuation. Two Air Station Elizabeth City HC-130 aircraft flew cover during the entire operation. The first helo on scene hoisted 15 people aboard in 20 minutes during 55-knot winds and 20- foot swells, which washed the pilothouse of the sinking ship. A second helo hauled up 16 more, and the third HH-3F rescued the final six, including the ship’s master. The three helos arrived in Atlantic City, New Jersey, having been in the air for four hours and having traveled more than 400 miles out to sea. Three days later President Reagan invited the Soviet seamen to the White House for a ceremony honoring the Coast Guard aviators. In his remarks, the President praised the crews for the daring rescue and stated, “In your courage, your tenacity, your know-how, you summed up all that is best in the American spirit—in a word, all that is heroic.”
► Interdicting Drug-Smuggling Mexican Vessel: On 27 March, while patrolling 50 miles southeast of the Misteriosa Banks, crewmen of the USS John L. Hall (FFG- 32) sighted the 62-foot Mexican long- liner San Francisco 11 riding low in the water with an apparent false waterline. The vessel refused to allow the Coast Guard LEDet embarked in the frigate to make a consensual boarding, but the Mexican government authorized a boarding based on the master’s claim of Mexican registry. The LEDet discovered 12.5 tons of marijuana in the vessel’s hold, seized the vessel, and arrested the crew of six. The next day the Mexican Navy took control of the vessel, the crew, and the evidence package, and the John L. na returned to normal operations.
► Seizing Navy-Ramming Lobster
On 2 April the LEDet on board the US McCloy (FF-1038) seized the Bahainia'1 lobster boat Orion I 180 miles south"1-'' of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba—but not bifore the 55-foot boat rammed the frig8'1" twice. The Orion 1 had originally fa^e to respond to the McCloy's communic*1 tions, upon which the Bahamian govC8 nient granted its permission to board tn vessel, and the Coast Guard Comma8 dant issued a Statement of No Object'0'’ (SNO) to board Orion I and to fire be^ warning and disabling shots. Sever bursts of 50-caliber machine gun firc ^ nally convinced the vessel’s crew heave to. The LEDet discovered 2 bales of marijuana in the Orion I and *'r rested the crew. .
► Employing AMVER for Joint SAR 8 the Pacific: On 23 April the 150-foot tUr Marine Constructor with a tow suffer0 miles west of San Francisco. Three ere" men suffered first- and second-deg8® burns and a fourth suffered from sm° and halon inhalation. A 120th Air Rest-'11 and Recovery Service HC-130 a'rcra,j with a flight surgeon on board dropPL five paramedics to the tug. The next ° an Air Station Sacramento HC-130 a" craft dropped additional medical supp to the tug, and within hours, the Japa|1L^ motor vessel Jinyu Maru, participating the Automated Mutual Assistance Vess^ Rescue (AMVER) system, rendezvous® with the Marine Constructor. The P‘j tients, now stabilized, and the parame ics were placed aboard the Jinyu M‘l and the ship proceeded to a rendez'0 ^ with the USS Ranger (CV-61), to wh'® the paramedics and their patients tra8 ferred. The following day a Ranger craft flew the patients to medical facib
'forn:
^at Proved to be a dramatic eight-hour ^Scue operation. The fishing vessel ^Q,C -v Lou was standing by the stricken af but could not assist because of the c y.ere weather. The Point Carrew re- 50 ^6r crew’ braved 20-foot seas in
with”01 w'nc*s> and arrived on scene the h* tW° ^ours- The Point Carrew took °at in tow and sent a Coast Guards-
la, in the Santa Barbara Channel, for
taking on board the 56 men and 14
vvomi
repatriated the 70 migrants. On 2 t US< located
July
‘ vjo
vessei'0Catec* a 40-foot Haitian sailing
>38 i
i until 5 July.
repatriating the remaining
,ri?ka- The <TCated
^Cci
Ivere^lng revealed that 129,000 gallons e eased. In a move having poten-
eUrrc| U SP'b lb-000 gallons had In.v,but final measurements upon
!n p3n Pablo, California.
escue in Heavy Weather off Point ugu, California: On 25 May the cutter °>nt Carrew (WPB-82374) responded to lsabled 22-foot pleasure craft in heavy as five miles south of Point Mugu, Cal-
n aboard to treat two injured persons. tjQe cutter rolled 50° during boat opera- During the tow, the disabled ves- Poi *0rvvar(J deck hatch broke loose. The hai-m ^arrew requested a nearby tug and Who61° come alongside and provide a lee five 6 <“°ast Duard personnel removed all jn Persons from the sinking boat. Dur- Wat he °Perat*on> one person fell into the the^ ^Ut was quickly recovered when k jCUtter rolled toward him.
On n,e^‘ct‘nS Illegal Haitian Migrants: (Wluc^ ^une the USCGC Spencer Bajt- DC-905) interdicted the 35-foot 125 *an saDing vessel Parule Peuple 7 Paitim'leS nortbwest of Port-au-Prince,
strovCn Parule Peuple 7 carried and de- anj ln8 the vessel as a hazard to health ofp navi8ation. The Coast Guard liaison Prjn(;er 'n the U. S. Embassy in Port-au- at (^e reported that standard repatriation civi] ^0rt Was unpractical because of the On around Haitian coastal areas.
*be situation calmed, and the
ueneerr 624) !he USCGC Dauntless (WMEC nii|eWl'h 141 Haitians on board three lancjS^°uthwest of New Providence Is- k0y’ ahamas. With the assistance of the 0aa Bahamian Defense Force, the the s fSS toob on the migrants and sank ingf*1 ln8 vessel. Three Haitians suffer- to |i.<ari diabetic comas were medevaced civi]U am’an medical facilities. Again, GuJnres‘ m Haiti prevented the Coast - a from
Occt,n-°j ^ Spill In Alaska: An oil spill U. j w °n 2 July when the 774-foot 39q j’Duf vessel Glacier Bay, carrying st^k ^arrels °f North Slope crude oil, s°uth t Emerged object five miles Alaxiro ^enai River in Cook Inlet, master’s original estimates tially serious economic implications, the state closed the salmon fishery north of Redoubt Point. Marine Safety Office Anchorage, the on-scene coordinator, initially reported that extreme spring tides were forcing the oil away from the fishery area. The Pacific Strike Team dispatched seven personnel to assist with cleanup operations. Three HH-3F helicopters, two from Air Station Kodiak and one from Air Station Sitka, deployed to assist, operating at the direction of the captain of the port. The cutter Sedge (WLB-402) served as a communications platform and director of inlet operations. Trinidad Shipping, the owner, accepted responsibility for the spill and immediately began cleanup efforts. However, within a week the Coast Guard took over the operation. For 17 days cleanup crews chased the oil around the 700 square miles of Cook Inlet before scaling down the operation. Coast Guardsmen removed nearly 15,000 gallons of oil and oil- soaked debris from the inlet and beaches— at a cost to the service of approximately $1.8 million.
► Silencing Pirate Broadcasters Off
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Where Technological Innovation Becomes Reality
0,iS Island: On 28 July the cutter Cape orn (WPB-95322) assisted the Federal ^ommunications Commission (FCC) in attempt to silence an unlicensed radio C(ftl0n *5roadcasting from the 200-foot astal freighter Sarah. Anchored four th' e„s south of Jones Beach, Long Island, pQe ll’x,h had been illegally broadcasting tio^U ar mus'c s'nce 24 July. Documenta- a rn on hoard revealed that the vessel had tioeP0rted provisional Honduran registra- hi« °Perator of the ship had a long of ‘nfract'ons- At the request
pro ^ FCC, the State Department ap-
and ^ t*le 80vernrnent °f Honduras Q confirmed the Sarah’s registry claim, th ast Guard and FCC officials arrested •he vreW and lhc FCC personnel altered to r ?ra,r's communications equipment V-,,e Uce the possibility of further “pri-
broadcasting.”
Fro r°tec,‘n8 >he Pan American Games: pp *~18 August one of the largest Uni.C.etlrne gatherings of Coast Guard tCc(S °n the Great Lakes formed to pro- CQm 10 Fan American Games yachting ^Petition off Michigan City, Indiana. Safet hotnmanding officer of Marine cotti 'V ^*ce Chicago led the task force GUa^?sec^ °f regular, reserve, and Coast ■|'her auxiliarists aboard 20 vessels. safe^ estahlished a 64-square-mile marine l\e ? Zone off Michigan City. The cutter ar|ion ^TGB-105) was anchored Saiii^® ^angular courses designed for in„ °artis and sailboats, acting as a floating ea^uarters for the task force. For event t lUn a >’ear Pr’or t0 the yachting and c ’ C°ast Guard personnel planned law 0°rd*nated a security plan with other s\v0n orcement officials. More than 300 0Uar" Security officers from the Coast and ’ ^Fl, and state and local police Gammore than 2,000 Pan American 16 C6S v°)unteers protected athletes from Wem Un.tr'es- The yachting competition ► 4,y° 1 Without incident.
KjotixaiId Sea Seizure of a Suspected ti0r, £'fhip: On 2 September an Air Sta- 0^^ IZabeth City HC-130 aircraft lo- fttojh e ^0-foot Wamandai, a suspected itiatei hip for dru8 runners, approxi- *^5 nautical miles southeast of 2s uda- An Air Station Cape Cod HU- beth pUVy F-3C, an Air Station Eliza- Clealty HC-130, and an Air Station oUs CQater HC-130 conducted continu- G«//0?Ver1 surveiHance, while the cutter NaVy "1 AVHEC-721) outchopped from Sep,ee*ercises and arrived on scene 5 receiy"1-- The Gallatin requested and Stia] bC. Ferrn'ss>on to conduct a consen- 40o ^°archng of the Wamandai, locating shelteU 6S mar*juana in the main deck •hen / 3nd in the main hold- The Gallatin guested and obtained an SNO to seize the stateless Wamandai and arrest the Colombian crew of 13. However, prior to seizure the Wamandai's crew sabotaged the saltwater intake, flooding and disabling the engine. The now- disabled vessel was later towed to Port Everglades, Florida.
► Enforcing Atlantic Fisheries: On 7 September a boarding party from the cutter Cape Henlopen (WPB-95328) boarded the 74-foot U. S. fishing vessel Maria Helena after observing the crew using an illegal fishing net 90 miles east of Boston. The cutter observed the Maria Helena during haulback, detected an illegal "choker” device on the net and witnessed the crew release the "choker,” allowing the fish to fall into the cod end of the net. On questioning, the Maria Helena crew denied any knowledge of the “choker.” Having obtained an SNO, the Cape Henlopen seized the catch, escorted the fishing vessel and crew of seven to Gloucester, and transferred custody of the fish and vessel to National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) agents. The next day the NMFS sold the 19,845 pounds of groundfish at auction for $15,206.
► Evacuating Flood Victims: On 25 December Marine Safety Office Memphis implemented its flood relief plan when the city of West Memphis, Arkansas, requested Coast Guard assistance. Heavy rains caused Mississippi River tributaries to overflow, flooding more than 2,000 homes in the region. Sections of West Memphis were under four to six feet of water on Christmas Day, with more heavy rains expected the next day. Flash flood watches were in effect for western Tennessee, northern Mississippi, and
Here’s a hand, comrade. Three Coast Guard helicopter crews braved 55-knot winds to hoist 37 Soviet seamen from their sinking freighter when she foundered east of Delaware Bay in March of last year.
southern Arkansas. Marine Safety Office Memphis, mobilized Coast Guard reservists, the cutter Cimarron (WLR-65502), and an HH-65 helicopter from Air Station New Orleans assisted local fire and police departments and National Guard personnel in evacuating 800 people who were in immediate danger.
Restructuring the Coast Guard
Reorganization and realignment were words heard often throughout the Coast Guard in 1987. In one of the most extensive reorganizations in Coast Guard history, a realignment of support functions took place in mid-year. A study team appointed by the Commandant in 1986 looked at a new support structure with fewer Coast Guard district and area staff billets, and fewer civilian positions, as well. The initiative was not to reduce the service’s total personnel strength, but to redirect those resources thus freed to operational billets. The realignment will ultimately release approximately 500 personnel from staff and support positions to fill operational billets aboard new aircraft and cutters.
The major restructuring that was implemented included:
► Disestablishment of the Third District (headquartered in New York); establishment of a new boundary between the First and Fifth districts at the Toms River in
' r»c
New Jersey, which transferred the Port of New York to the First District and Philadelphia and Delaware Bay to the Fifth.
► Disestablishment of the Twelfth District (headquartered in San Francisco); expanding the Eleventh District to include all of California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona.
► Establishment of two new flag-level commands and their associated subordinate commands within the Atlantic and Pacific areas; commissioning of Maintenance and Logistics Command Pacific on 24 June in Alameda and Maintenance and Logistics Command Atlantic in New York on 1 July; organizing a new structure of technical (naval, civil, and electronics engineering), finance, personnel, health services, and legal support to be provided to all districts and large cutters within each area (rather than the individual districts providing such support).
► Transferring to the two area commanders management of all cutters larger than 180 feet (except for the icebreaker Mackinaw [WAGB-83] on the Great Lakes) and all communications stations.
► Reorganization of the district staffs around the following functions: operational (aids to navigation, search and rescue, law enforcement), readiness and reserve, marine safety, boating safety, and administration and planning.
A second study team spent much of 1987 analyzing ways to improve the organization and functioning of Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington. Several of the key recommendations that the service will implement in 1988 are:
► Reorganization of the Chief of Staffs Office and a consolidation of the comptroller and resource director functions; a flag officer will fill this billet as “resource director' ’ under the Chief of Staff.
► Distributing various functions of several offices to balance the workload; examples include moving search-and- rescue functions and icebreaking responsibilities from the Office of Operation to the Office of Navigation.
► Establishment of a Strategic Planning Council at the top of the organization.
► Restructuring of the Office of Personnel into the Office of Personnel and Training; the aim will be to improve training, while making it more cost- effective for the service.
Other important changes will also take place during 1988. A previously scheduled 8.5% personnel cut in the headquarters staff will occur simultaneously with the reorganization.
Major Aircraft and Cutter Developments have potentially long-term impacts on Coast Guard aviation. On 1 April the service awarded a contract to reconfigure eight HU-25 jet aircraft into air interceptors. During the modification, the aircraft’s maritime search radar will be replaced with a fire control radar used on the Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon. The equipment will enable crews to detect aircraft from the deck to distances of 80 nautical miles. The “new” interceptors will also see in the dark with a forward looking infrared (FLIR) system. A secure communications upgrade rounds out the contract package. These jets will allow the Coast Guard to intercept an aircraft, classify it by type, and follow it covertly. The first interceptor was to be delivered in April 1988.
In February 1987 the Coast Guard established a new air facility at the Norfolk Naval Air Station. A pair of $25 million H-2C Hawkeye radar planes commenced surveillance patrols operating from the facility, flying missions at altitudes of 20,000 feet throughout the Caribbean. The aircraft, on loan from the Navy, may prove costly for the Coast Guard to op£r ate and maintain. However, they will e key assets in strengthening the air inItr diction strategy of the Coast Guard an the U. S. Customs Service.
The strength of the Coast Guard s sur face forces is weakened somewhat cause nine major cutters—five 378-i° high-endurance cutters and four 210-*°^ medium-endurance cutters—are out service for major overhaul availabilit'eS' To avoid block obsolescence and the t>n
classes, during the past decade the set vice had to plan and budget for both grams. Unfortunately^ the availabil>t,e occur simultaneously, which will stra the remaining operating fleet. .
Robert E. Derecktor Shipyard ' Rhode Island continues to deliver 1 modem 270-foot Famous-class med*u ^ endurance cutters. Two cutters of class were delivered in 1987; three are expected in 1988; and the final tw
Two significant events in 1987 could
Table 4 Major Ships of the U. S. Coast Guard Fleet' High-Endurance Cutters (14) | ||
WHEC 378’ | 12 | — 5 decommissioned lor fleet rehabilitation and modernization |
WHEC 327’ | 1 | — Ingham; no flight deck |
WHEC 311’ | 1 | — Unimak; no flight deck |
Medium-Endurance Cutters (36)2 | ||
WMEC 270’ | 8 | — 5 additional under construction |
WMEC 230’ | 1 | — Storis; no flight deck |
WMEC 213’ | 3 | — No flight decks |
WMEC 210’ | 16 | — 4 decommissioned for major maintenance availability |
WMEC 205’ | 5 | — No flight decks |
WMEC 180’ | 3 | — WLBs operating as WMECs; no flight decks |
Polar and Domestic Icebreakers (13)3
'As of 31 December 1987. Total of 108 cutters 133’ or greater in length (net gain of 1 comparer111' 1986). 21987 Additions: Escanaba (WMEC 907) and Tahoma (WMEC 908). 31987 Deletion: Gk>cU (WAGB 4)
WLB 180’ 28 — Seagoing tenders
WLM 175’ 1 — Fir; coastal tender
WLIC 160’ 4 — Large construction tenders
WLM 157’ 5 — Coastal tenders
WLM 133’ 6 — Coastal tenders
Barque Eagle at the U. S. Coast Guard Academy
WIX 295’ 1 —
Major Buoy Tenders (44)
Polar Star and Polar Sea
Mackinaw; Great Lakes icebreaking
Northwind and Westwind
Small icebreakers for Great Lakes/East Coast
icebreaking; 1 additional under construction
Training Cutter (1)
WAGB 399’ WAGB 290’ WAGB 269’ WTGB 140’
cutter
reliability of these two major
,989-
ltd'
ships should be commissioned in
These ships, with their superior comma1
and-control capabilities, will reP a
hi/.
150 forei
*4?
-• C'"n nationals from 44 nations re-
many °f the oldest high- and medium- ^fdurance cutter classes. In 1987 the °ast Guard awarded Bollinger Shipyard tao°U's‘ana a contract for approximately 9 million to deliver by 1990 16 addi- ■orial patrol boats of the 110-foot Island class.
On 7 june jgg7 the p0|ar icebreaker ocier (WAGB-4) was decommissioned $n Portland, Oregon, after 32 years of ervice, leaving the nation with only four q ar icebreakers. The Glacier, in the °ast Guard fleet since 1966, was commissioned a Navy ship in 1955, sailing on er first Antarctic voyage as Rear Admi- s, Richard Byrd, Jr.’s, flagship. Thus, e Was with the U. S. Antarctic program tj°m *he very beginning of the U. S. con- anu°Us presence on the continent. During p '"fstrious career, the Glacier partici- ^ ed in 29 Antarctic Deep Freeze and 10 . ctlc deployments—a record that illus- es the importance of having a multi- timS*°n ahle to provide a U. S. mari- c presence in the high latitudes, fru 'le RaSt year was once again a time of 0j. stcation and debate about replacement n he nation’s aging polar icebreaker ^ ' a process the Coast Guard has Pursuing for more than a decade, 'ssues are increasingly complex. mey 'uvolve potential leasing arranges- a National Science Foundation tese^ t0 secure funding f°r 3 leased polar Na ar,C^ icebreaker in Antarctica, and the ,0J s continued muted concern for the flj. of this unique national capability. Ij ts an extraordinary situation, since ,os. .strategic, scientific, political, and epp^'c requirements for maritime pres-
n *n the Arctic and Antarctic have ‘‘ever k
Pou Deen more important. To com- the nt* situation at the end of 1987, shoSf.rV'Ce’ because of its 1988 budget decta ’ was formulating plans to ^urnniission the polar icebreakers (C'W (WAGB-281) and Northwind the in 1988. This would leave
bre. i n'ted States with two polar ice- f]eCrs’ lhe smallest U. S. icebreaker ln nearly half a century.
t^itional Activities
n 1987 Coast Guard schools trained P,w0reign nationals from 63 countries.
Upit °n-the-job training at Coast Guard sear ’, Saining practical experience in . and rescue, small boat operations, Moh.,w enforcement. Also, Coast Guard nati0' e Training Teams traveled to 20 60q ns Providing training to more than drjf^ents, primarily in fisheries and atari 3VV enf°rcement, port safety, and ne environmental protection.
Since 1981 the Coast Guard has participated in Unitas, a goodwill exercise in which a U. S. Navy detachment circumnavigates South America. A Coast Guard detachment provides training focused on military readiness, law enforcement, search and rescue, and marine environmental protection. Since 1985 the Coast Guard has assumed control of a part of Unitas devoted to the needs of Caribbean island nations. For seven weeks in 1987 the cutter Steadfast (WMEC-623) carried out this Caribbean patrol named Operation Teamwork. The Steadfast sailed 4,000 miles and visited nine island nations. A Coast Guard detachment also participated in the West African Training Cruise, an extension of Unitas.
The Commandant represented the United States at two major international meetings in 1987. In June at LaCoruna, Spain, Admiral Yost headed the U. S. delegation at the 15th session of the International Lifeboat Conference. Member search-and-rescue organizations hold extensive discussions every four years on the design of rescue equipment and operational procedures. In November the Commandant again represented U. S. maritime interests at the assembly of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Marine safety, pollution prevention, legal and technical assistance, and facilitation of trade issues were discussed by the delegations from IMO’s 131 member nations. Such meetings enable the Coast Guard leadership to keep the United States abreast of significant developments in international marine policy.
The cutter Eagle (WIX-327) departed the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, on 12 September 1987, destined to return this month following a Pacific voyage to participate in Australia’s bicentennial celebration. By year’s end, the crew of 210, including 30 women, had sailed to Newcastle and was preparing for visits to Brisbane, Hobart, Sydney, and Manly.
The Future
The immediate future will not be easy for the Coast Guard and its cadre of dedicated personnel. The profound structural realignment within the organization mandated during 1987 coupled with continual budget battles present an intensely stressful environment. How quickly and effectively Coast Guard personnel respond to these changes will be key to the successful transition to what is hoped to be a more dynamic and responsive agency. From a budgetary perspective, the Coast Guard leadership must continue to vigorously confront and reverse the trend of decreasing purchasing power of the Coast Guard’s operating budget in an era of expanding responsibilities, particularly in law enforcement.
The Commandant will face many issues and challenges in 1988. Several of note may be:
► Resolution with the Department of Transportation, Office of Management and Budget, and the Congress of the difficult and complex budget situation the Coast Guard faces annually in its quest for the finite funds allocated to the transportation functions of government.
► Making the reconfigured headquarters organization more effective, particularly the Strategic Planning Council, which is a critical element in a “sea of change.”
► Preparation of a strategy and long- range plan in anticipation of a new U. S. President and administration.
► Avoidance of the temptation to “fix” the new Coast Guard field (support) structure radically if complex, lingering problems persist.
► Deciding the near-term fate of the nation’s polar icebreaker program and finding a way to replace these expensive but vital national assets.
► Development of an integrated, logical strategy for air interdiction within a framework of interagency cooperation.
► Strengthening the importance of and placing the most crucial issues before the Navy/Coast Guard Board (an unappealing group to some, but a forum knowledgeable observers regard as potentially effective).
The Coast Guard’s multimission organization is by nature flexible. It has allowed a relatively small federal agency to respond to the wide-ranging and critical maritime needs of the United States. These needs and the responsibilities of the United States as a leading maritime nation will not disappear overnight. Flexibility and commitment will be the key words for all Coast Guard personnel to remember in 1988.
Commander Lawson Brigham is serving as the first commanding officer of the USCGC Escanaba (WMEC-907). He has served on board the Rockaway (WAGO-377), commanded the cutters Point Steele (WPB-82359) and Mobile Bay (WTGB-103), and has deployed to the Arctic and Antarctic on board the nation’s polar icebreakers. Ashore he has served as a Coast Guard Academy science instructor and head sailing coach, as chief of the Icebreaker Facilities Branch at Coast Guard Headquarters, and as the Coast Guard’s Liaison Officer to the Chief of Naval Operations within OP-60. Commander Brigham is a 1970 Coast Guard Academy graduate, a distinguished graduate of the Naval War College, and a guest investigator at the Marine Policy Center of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.