| Career (US) | |
|---|---|
| Builder: | Bollinger Shipyards |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 331 tons (336 metric tons) full load |
| Length: | 179 ft (55 m) |
| Beam: | 25 ft (7.6 m) |
| Propulsion: | Four Paxman diesels; four shafts; 3,350 shaft horsepower (2.50 MW) |
| Speed: | 35 knots (40 mph; 65 km/h) |
| Endurance: | 2000-2500nm (@12knots, with transit fuel reserve) |
| Crew: | Four officers, 24 enlisted personnel |
| Armament: | 2 × MK 38 25 mm autocannon 5 × .50 caliber machine guns 2 × MK 19 40 mm automatic grenade launchers 2 × M240B machine guns 6 × FIM-92 Stinger SAMs |
The Cyclone class patrol ships are a class of United States Navy coastal patrol boats. Most of these ships were launched between 1992 and 1994.
The primary mission of these ships is coastal patrol and interdiction surveillance, an important aspect of littoral operations outlined in the Navy's strategy, "Forward...From the Sea." These ships also provide full mission support for Navy SEALs and other special operations forces. The Cyclone class ships are assigned to Naval Special Warfare. Of the thirteen ships, nine originally operated out of the Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Norfolk, Virginia, and four originally operated from the Naval Amphibious Base Coronado. These ships provide the Naval Special Warfare Command with a fast, reliable platform that can respond to emergent requirements in a low intensity conflict environment.
Three hulls have been decommissioned and loaned to the United States Coast Guard to be returned to the Navy in 2011 and one was transferred to the Philippine Navy. Of the remaining ten, five are homeported at Little Creek and five are homeported in Bahrain as part of a rotating forward deployment.
The hulls on loan to the US Coast Guard are used in a variety of roles, including search and rescue, interception, boarding, and inspection of foreign freighters arriving at US ports.
In September 2010, the decision was made to recall all of the remaining ships of the class due to fatigue damage to their hulls. The class was designed for a lifespan of roughly 15 years. All but the newest member of the class, Tornado, have been in service longer. The vessels will be inspected and a decision will be made whether to refit them or to decommission the ships.
Contents |
| Ship | Hull No. | Commissioned– Decommissioned |
Homeport | Status | NVR Page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cyclone | PC-1 | 1993–2000 | — | Transferred to the U.S. Coast Guard in February 2000 as USCGC Cyclone (WPC-1), transferred to the Philippine Navy in March 2004. Now BRP Mariano Alvarez (PS-38). | PC-1 |
| Tempest | PC-2 | 1993– | Little Creek, VA | Active | PC-2 |
| Hurricane | PC-3 | 1993– | Little Creek | Active | PC-3 |
| Monsoon | PC-4 | 1994– | Little Creek | Active | PC-4 |
| Typhoon | PC-5 | 1994– | Manama, Bahrain | Active | PC-5 |
| Sirocco | PC-6 | 1994– | Manama, Bahrain | Active | PC-6 |
| Squall | PC-7 | 1994– | Little Creek | Active | PC-7 |
| Zephyr | PC-8 | 1994–2004 | Pascagoula, Mississippi | On loan to the U.S. Coast Guard as USCGC Zephyr (WPC-8) | PC-8 |
| Chinook | PC-9 | 1995– | Manama, Bahrain | Active | PC-9 |
| Firebolt | PC-10 | 1995– | Manama, Bahrain | Active | PC-10 |
| Whirlwind | PC-11 | 1995– | Manama, Bahrain | Active | PC-11 |
| Thunderbolt | PC-12 | 1995– | Little Creek | Active | PC-12 |
| Shamal | PC-13 | 1996–2004 | Pascagoula, Mississippi | On loan to the U.S. Coast Guard as USCGC Shamal (WPC-13) | PC-13 |
| Tornado | PC-14 | 2000–2004 | Pascagoula, Mississippi | On loan to the U.S. Coast Guard as USCGC Tornado (WPC-14) | PC-14 |
This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain.
|
|
||||||||