Sentinel-class cutter

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Sentinel class

The first Fast Response Cutter, Bernard C. Webber, gets underway.
Class overview
Operators: United States Coast Guard
Planned: 58
Active: 7[1]
General characteristics
Displacement: 353 long tons
Length: 46.8 m (154 ft)
Beam: 8.11 m (26.6 ft)
Depth: 2.9 m (9.5 ft)
Propulsion: 2 × 4,300 kilowatts (5,800 shp)
1 × 75 kilowatts (101 shp) bow thruster
Speed: 28 knots (52 km/h; 32 mph)
Endurance: 5 days, 2,500 nautical miles (4,600 km; 2,900 mi)
Designed to be on patrol 2,500 hours per year
Boats & landing
craft carried:		 1 × Short Range Prosecutor RHIB
Complement: 2 officers, 20 crew
Sensors and
processing systems:		 L-3 C4ISR suite
Armament: 1 × Mk 38 Mod 2 25 mm automatic gun
4 × crew-served Browning M2 machine guns

The Sentinel-class cutter, previously known as the Fast Response Cutter, is part of the United States Coast Guard's Deepwater program.[2][3] At 46.8 metres (154 ft) it is similar to, but larger than the 123-foot (37 m) extended Island-class patrol boat, like the USCGC Matagorda (WPB-1303). 24 to 58 vessels are to be built by the Louisiana based firm Bollinger Shipyards, using a design from the Netherlands-based Damen Group, with the Sentinel design based on the company's Damen Stan 4708 patrol vessel.

Planning and acquisition

On March 14, 2007, Commandant Thad Allen announced that they had withdrawn from a contract for the construction of the vessels, but had not entirely cancelled the program.[4][5] The new program would focus more on "off-the-shelf" technology.

Plan of the proposed Sentinel-class cutters - modified from the Damen Stan 4708 patrol vessels.

On September 26, 2008, Bollinger Shipyards was awarded US$88 million to build a prototype.[6] The cutter will be the first of a series of 24-34 43 metres (141 ft) cutters built to a design largely based on the Stan 4708 patrol vessels from the Netherlands firm the Damen Group.[7] The South African government employs similar vessels for environmental and fishery patrol.[8] The first cutter will be named USCGC Bernard C. Webber (WPC-1101), and all future Sentinel class will be named after enlisted Coast Guard heroes.[9] Bernard C. Webber will be stationed in Miami. Bernard C. Webber was launched on Thursday, April 21, 2011, and commissioned on Saturday, April 14, 2012 at the Port of Miami.[10]

On September 26, 2013 Marine Link reported that the Coast Guard had placed orders for additional cutters, bringing the number of cutters ordered so far to thirty.[11]

Design and construction

The vessels are armed with a remote-control 25 mm Bushmaster autocannon and four, crew-served M2HB .50-caliber machine guns. They have a bow thruster for maneuvering in crowded anchorages and channels. They also have small underwater fins, for coping with the rolling and pitching caused by large waves. They are equipped with a stern launching ramp, like the Marine Protector-class and the eight failed expanded Island-class cutters. They are manned by a crew of 22. Like the Marine Protector class, and the cancelled extended Island-class cutters, the Fast Response Cutter would deploy the Short Range Prosecutor Rigid-hulled inflatable (SRP or RHIB) for rescues and interceptions.[12] According to Marine Log, modifications to the Coast Guard vessels from the Stan 4708 design include an increase in speed from 23 to 28 knots (43 to 52 km/h; 26 to 32 mph), fixed pitch rather than variable pitch propellers, stern launch capability, and watertight bulkheads.[13]

On February 7, 2013, the Department of Homeland Security requested tenders from third party firms to independently inspect the cutters, during their construction, and their performance trials.[14]

Ships

On October 27, the Coast Guard released the names of the first 14 Coast Guard enlisted heroes for whom the Sentinel-class FRCs will be named.[15][16] [17]

Sentinel-class cutters
 Name   Number   Builder   Launched   Commissioned   Home port   Status 
Bernard C. Webber WPC-1101 Bollinger Shipyards 2011-04-21 2012-04-14 Miami, FL In commission
Richard Etheridge WPC-1102 Bollinger Shipyards 2011-08-19 2012-08-03 Miami, FL In commission[18]
William Flores WPC-1103 Bollinger Shipyards 2011-11-10 2012-11-03 Miami, FL Commissioned[19]
Robert Yered WPC-1104 Bollinger Shipyards 2012-11-23 2013-02-17 Miami, FL Commissioned[20][21]
Margaret Norvell WPC-1105 Bollinger Shipyards 2013-01 2013-06-01 Miami, FL Commissioned[22][23][24][25]
Paul Clark WPC-1106 Bollinger Shipyards 2013-05-18 2013-08-24 Miami, FL Commissioned[26]
Charles David WPC-1107 Bollinger Shipyards 2013-08-20 2013-11-16 Key West, FL[27] Commissioned[22][23][28][29][30][31]
Charles W. Sexton WPC-1108 Bollinger Shipyards 2013-12-10 2014-03 Key West, FL delivered[22][23][32]
Kathleen Moore WPC-1109 Bollinger Shipyards Key West, FL under construction[22][23]
Joseph Napier WPC-1110 Bollinger Shipyards Key West, FL under construction[22][23]
William Trump WPC-1111 Bollinger Shipyards Key West, FL under construction[22][23]
Isaac Mayo WPC-1112 Bollinger Shipyards Key West, FL under construction[22][23]
Richard Dixon WPC-1113 Bollinger Shipyards Puerto Rico under construction[22]
Heriberto Hernandez WPC-1114 Bollinger Shipyards Puerto Rico under construction[22]

Namesakes

Charles "Skip" W. Bowen, who was then the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard, is credited with leading the initiative of naming the vessels after enlisted individuals who served heroically in the Coast Guard, or one of its precursor services.[33] Originally the first vessel of the class was to be named the USCGC Sentinel.[34]

In October 2010 the Coast Guard named the first fourteen individuals the vessel will be named after, and has provided biographies of them.[35] They are: Bernard C. Webber, Richard Etheridge, William Flores, Robert Yered, Margaret Norvell, Paul Clark, Charles David, Charles Sexton, Kathleen Moore, Joseph Napier, William Trump, Isaac Mayo, Richard Dixon, Heriberto Hernandez.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/11/17/3761058/new-coast-guard-cutter-honors.html
  2. ↑ Christopher P. Cavas (2009-09-30). "U.S. Coast Guard Chooses New Patrol Boat". Defense News. Retrieved 2009-10-13. 
  3. ↑ "Fast Response Cutter (FRC)". Integrated Deepwater System Program. Retrieved 2007-09-01. 
  4. ↑ "Coast Guard reassigns Deepwater replacement patrol boat acquisition project". United States Coast Guard. 2007-03-14. Retrieved 2007-09-01. 
  5. ↑ "U.S. Coast Guard Running Out of Ships". Strategy Page. 2007-03-25. Retrieved 2007-09-01. 
  6. ↑ "Acquisition Directorate: Newsroom". United States Coast Guard. Archived from the original on 2009-10-08. 
  7. ↑ "SENTINEL Class Patrol Boat: Media Round Table". United States Coast Guard. 2008-09-30. Archived from the original on 2009-10-03. 
  8. ↑ "Damen Stan Patrol Vessel 4708: Lillian Ngoyi". Damen Group. Archived from the original on 2009-10-11. 
  9. ↑ http://www.uscg.mil/announcements/alcoast/132-10_alcoast.txt ALCOAST 132/10
  10. ↑ http://www.uscg.mil/acquisition/newsroom/updates/sentinel040910.asp Acquisition Directorate Newsroom
  11. ↑ "Coast Guard to Acquire 6 More Sentinel-class Boats". Marine Link. 2013-09-26. Retrieved 2013-09-26. 
  12. ↑ "Short Range Prosecutor (SRP)". Integrated Deepwater System Program. Retrieved 2007-09-01. 
  13. ↑ "Bollinger awarded potential $1.5 billion FRC contract". Marine Log. 2009-09-26. Archived from the original on 2009-10-10. 
  14. ↑ Mickey McCracker (2013-02-07). "Coast Guard Looks for Small Biz to Support Design Review of Fast Response Cutters". Homeland Security Today. Archived from the original on 2013-02-08. "The Coast Guard asked disadvantaged small businesses, classified as 8(a) businesses, to bid on providing engineering support both in Lockport and at USCG Headquarters in Washington, DC, for a period of two years by Feb. 13." 
  15. ↑ Stephanie Young (2010-10-27). "Coast Guard Heroes". United States Coast Guard. Archived from the original on 2013-01-03. Retrieved 2012-04-20. 
  16. ↑ Michael Valliant (November 2010). "Fast Response Cutters: The Heroes of the Coast Guard Fleet". United States Coast Guard. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2013-01-03. Retrieved 2011-08-05. 
  17. ↑ James Jay Carafano, Matt A. Mayer, Paul Rosenzweigis, Brian Slattery (2013-02-15). "2013 Second Quadrennial Homeland Security Review:". Archived from the original on 2013-02-21. "The Administration requested two FRCs in FY 2013. The House of Representatives added funding for two additional FRCs, while the Senate added two more, intending to procure a total of six cutters in FY 2013. The purpose of this increase was to take advantage of economies of scale. DHS should work with Congress to ensure that funding for the FRC program continues, so that the fleet can enter service quickly and efficiently." 
  18. ↑ "Cutter Richard Etheridge in commission". USCG. 2012-08-03. Retrieved 2012-10-23. "Crewmembers aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Richard Etheridge reveal the ship's name placard during the cutter's commissioning." 
  19. ↑ "PHOTO RELEASE: Coast Guard Cutter William Flores commissioned in Tampa, Fla." (in English). Tampa Bay, Florida: USCG. 2012-11-03. Archived from the original on 2012-11-12. Retrieved 2012-11-12. "The William Flores' location of the commissioning honored the history of the cutter’s namesake. On the night of Jan. 28, 1980, Coast Guard Seaman William “Billy” Flores, 18, died while assisting his shipmates after the Coast Guard Cutter Blackthorn, collided with a large merchant vessel in the Tampa Bay ship channel." 
  20. ↑ "Coast Guard receives new Sentinel-class cutter". United States Coast Guard. 2012-11-23. Archived from the original on 2012-11-26. Retrieved 2012-11-26. "Bollinger Shipyards Inc. has delivered its fourth fast-response cutter to the U.S. Coast Guard." 
  21. ↑ Mike Nixon (2012-03-12). "Bollinger sets sail with 4th in series". Tri-Parish Times. Retrieved 2013-01-27. 
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 22.4 22.5 22.6 22.7 22.8 "Current U.S. and Canadian Shipbuilding Contracts". Marine Log. 2012-12-28. Archived from the original on 2013-01-04. 
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 23.3 23.4 23.5 23.6 Adam Linhardt (2013-04-03). "Newest, fastest cutters on the way: All 58 ships will pass through Key West, Coast Guard says". Key West: Key News. Archived from the original on 2013-04-24. "Of those 58, six will stay in Key West: the Charles David, Charles Sexton, Kathleen Moore, Joseph Napier, William Trump and Isaac Mayo, one arriving every three months." 
  24. ↑ "Bollinger Deliver Fifth Fast Response Cutter". Marine Link. 2013-03-25. Archived from the original on 2013-03-27. "The 154 foot patrol craft 'Margaret Norvell' is the fifth vessel in the Coast Guard's Sentinel-class FRC program. To build the FRC, Bollinger Shipyards used a proven, in-service parent craft design based on the Damen Stan Patrol Boat 4708." 
  25. ↑ "Commissioning ceremony for Coast Guard Cutter Margaret Norvell". Coast Guard News. 2013-05-30. Archived from the original on 2013-05-31. Retrieved 2013-05-31. 
  26. ↑ "Fast Response Cutter, Paul Clark, named after WWII hero, delivered to Coast Guard". Government Security News. 2013-05-22. Archived from the original on 2013-05-31. Retrieved 2013-05-31. "The Coast Guard accepted delivery of Paul Clark, the sixth vessel in the Coast Guard’s Sentinel-class Fast Response Cutter (FRC) recapitalization project on May 18 in Key West, FL." 
  27. ↑ "U.S. Coast Guard commissions first Sentinel class Fast Response Cutter Homeported in Key West, FL". November 26, 2013. 
  28. ↑ Adam Linhardt (2013-07-07). "Coast Guard: Fast times ahead". Key West: Florida Keys News. Archived from the original on 2013-07-14. Retrieved 2013-07-14. "The first of six brand spanking new 154-foot Sentinel-class ships called Fast Response Cutters is set to arrive on Aug. 17 in Key West and crews of the new vessels are arriving to train." 
  29. ↑ "Bollinger Shipyards delivers seventh Sentinel Class cutter". Lockport, Louisiana: Marine Log. 2013-08-20. Archived from the original on 2013-08-20. Retrieved 2013-08-20. "The 154-foot patrol craft Charles David Jr. is the seventh vessel in the Coast Guard's Sentinel-class FRC program. To build the FRC, Bollinger Shipyards used a proven, in-service parent craft design based on the Damen Stan Patrol Boat 4708. It has a flank speed of 28 knots, state of the art command, control, communications and computer technology, and a stern launch system for the vessels 26 foot cutter boat. The FRC has been described as an operational “game changer,” by senior Coast Guard officials." 
  30. ↑ Keith Magill (2013-08-20). "Bollinger delivers latest Coast Guard cutter". Daily Comet. Archived from the original on 2013-08-21. Retrieved 2013-08-21. "The 154-foot Charles David Jr. was delivered Friday to the 7th Coast Guard District in Key West, Fla., where it will be commissioned in November." 
  31. ↑ Sean Kinney (2013-11-13). "First of six new Keys Coast Guard cutters is commissioned Saturday". Key News. Archived from the original on 2013-11-14. Retrieved 2013-11-14. "With commissioning set for Saturday of the fast-response cutter Charles David Jr., U.S. Coast Guard Sector Key West will take the first step in a two-year overhaul of the locally homeported fleet." 
  32. ↑ Jed Lipinski (2013-12-10). "Bollinger delivers eighth Fast-Response Cutter to U.S. Coast Guard". Lockport, Louisiana: New Orleans Times Picayune. Archived from the original on 2013-12-11. Retrieved 2013-12-11. "The vessel was delivered to the 7th Coast Guard District in Key West, Fla., where the Coast Guard expects to commission it in March 2014." 
  33. ↑ Susan Schept (2010-03-22). "Enlisted heroes honored". United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 2013-02-01. "After the passing of several well-known Coast Guard heroes last year, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Charles “Skip” Bowen mentioned in his blog that the Coast Guard does not do enough to honor its fallen heroes." 
  34. ↑ "U.S. Coast Guard announces name for first Sentinel-class cutter". 2010-03-22. Retrieved 2013-02-01. "Previously designated to be named the Coast Guard Cutter Sentinel, the cutter Bernard C. Webber will be the first of the service’s new 153-foot patrol cutters. Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Thad Allen approved the change of the cutter’s name to allow this class of vessels to be named after outstanding enlisted members who demonstrated exceptional heroism in the line of duty. This will be the first class of cutters to be named exclusively for enlisted members of the Coast Guard and its predecessor services." 
  35. ↑ Stephanie Young (2010-10-27). "Coast Guard Heroes". United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 2012-04-20. 

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