Pacific Area News

The much-needed replacement for the U.S. Coast Guard’s long-serving medium endurance cutters (WMEC) took a giant step closer to joining the fleet as the first Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) was launched and christened at Eastern Shipbuilding Group (ESG) in Panama City, Fla. on October 27, 2023.The future USCGC Argus (WMSM 915) was christened by the ship’s sponsor, Captain (Ret.) Beverly Kelley, the first woman to command a U.S. military vessel, the 95-foot patrol boat, USCGC Cape Newagen (WPB 95318).

International energy companies, from Germany's RWE to Spain's Iberdrola, are urging Japan to beef up offshore wind power auctions and make investments more attractive, amid soaring installation costs as competition for suppliers grows worldwide.Although desperate to ease its heavy dependence on energy imports from the Middle East and Russia, Japan is coming late to offshore wind, but some industry players say it is taking a more cautious approach that puts it at a disadvantage."It's a global race and we can't look at it in isolation…

The United States in recent weeks has been tracking what is believed to be a Russian military spy ship off the coast of the Hawaiian Islands.The U.S. Coast Guard said in an update on Thursday that it has been keeping tabs on the vessel, a suspected "intelligence gathering ship", for several weeks. Video footage released by the agency showed the ship in waters off the Hawaiian coast on January 11.The ship has been identified as the Kareliya (SSV-535), a Vishnya-class intelligence ship used by the Russian Navy for signals intelligence gathering.

Adm. Linda L. Fagan has been confirmed as the 27th Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, clearing way for her to be the first woman top officer in one of the military services. The Senate on Wednesday approved Fagan’s promotion, along with those of five other senior Coast Guard officers, by unanimous consent.Nominated for the role by President Joe Biden in April, Fagan will succeed Adm. Karl Schultz as head of the Coast Guard. Schultz, who has been Coast Guard Commandant since 2018, will retire at the end of this month.

President Joe Biden nominated Adm. Linda L. Fagan to serve as the 27th Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard. Upon confirmation, Adm. Fagan will be the first woman to serve as Commandant of the Coast Guard.Adm. Fagan currently serves as the 32nd Vice Commandant, having assumed the duties on June 18, 2021. The Vice Commandant is the Vice Service Chief and Chief Operating Officer, responsible for executing the Commandant’s Strategic Intent, managing internal organizational governance, and serving as the Component Acquisition Executive.Previously, Adm.

Adm. Linda L. Fagan has taken over as vice commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, relieving  Adm. Charles W. Ray during a military change-of-command ceremony held Friday at U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters.Adm. Fagan most recently served as the commander of the Coast Guard Pacific Area, overseeing all Coast Guard operations in the Pacific, covering more than 74 million square miles of ocean, from the U.S. Western States to Asia, and from the Arctic to Antarctica.“Adm. Fagan, it is an honor to welcome you as the first woman to serve as a four-star admiral in the U.S.

Vice Adm. Linda L. Fagan has been nominated by the White House to be the next Vice Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard. She would become the first Coast Guard female four-star admiral and the third woman to serve as Vice Commandant.Pending confirmation, Fagan is expected to relieve current Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard Adm. Charles W. Ray on June 18.“Vice Adm. Fagan is an outstanding leader with 36 years of Coast Guard operations, policy-making, joint service, and interagency experience,” said Adm. Karl L. Schultz, Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard.

A U.S. Coast Guard cutter's patrol in the Eastern Pacific has been cut short following a coronavirus outbreak on board, the Coast Guard said Wednesday.Legend-class cutter Stratton (WMSL-752) returned to its homeport Wednesday at Coast Guard Island in Alameda, Calif. after 11 crew members tested positive for COVID-19 during the deployment.The affected crew members reported mild symptoms and are receiving medical care.The cutter was met by Coast Guard medical staff, who conducted testing of the entire crew.

The Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) announced Monday that retired United States Coast Guard (USCG) Captain Dwight Collins has joined the port as Director of Public Safety and Security.Captain Collins directs all law enforcement, physical security, safety, and emergency management and preparedness services in support of more than 200,000 port employees, tenants and customers. He is also responsible for ensuring enforcement of seaport security initiatives in compliance with all federal…

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Healy (WAGB-20) is making an early return to its Seattle homeport, and its future Arctic operations have been canceled after the 21-year-old medium icebreaker suffered a fire in one of its main propulsion motors last week.The electrical fire was reported at 9:30 p.m. on August 18 while the Healy was 60 nautical miles off of Seward, Alaska, where it had embarked 11 scientists for research and security mission in the Arctic.An onboard fire team disconnected the affected motor…

Admiral James Steele Gracey, USCG (retired), 17th Commandant of the Coast Guard, passed away on Sunday, April 5, 2020, in Falls Church, Va., at the age of 92.Born in Newton, Mass. in 1927, Adm. Gracey graduated from the United States Coast Guard Academy in 1949. Adm. Gracey was a 1956 graduate of the Harvard Graduate School where he earned a Masters Degree in Business Administration.His career included diverse tours both ashore and afloat, including Commanding Officer, LORAN Station Ocean Cape…

The U.S. Coast Guard's sole heavy icebreaker arrived January 22 at McMurdo Station, following a 58-day transit from the United States. Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) departed its’ homeport of Seattle on November 26.This year marks the Polar Star’s 23rd journey to Antarctica in support of Operation Deep Freeze, an annual joint military service mission to resupply the United States Antarctic stations, in support of the National Science Foundation, the lead agency for the United States Antarctic Program.The 399-foot…

The U.S. Navy and Coast Guard and the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) began Maritime Training Activity (MTA) Malaysia 2019 marked by an opening ceremony at Lumut Naval Base, Aug. 14.MTA Malaysia 2019 is a continuation of 25 years of maritime engagements between the U.S. Navy and Royal Malaysian Navy serving to enhance mutual capabilities in ensuring maritime security and stability.The Pacific Area commander for the U.S. Coast Guard, Vice Adm. Linda Fagan, said that working alongside the U.S. Navy and international partners in this exercise is an important part of their mission in the Indo-Pacific.

Inadequate training and improper shoreside crane operations were found to be the cause of a fatal accident earlier this year in the US Coast Guard buoy yard in Homer, Alaska.A shoreside crane mishap on January 31 lead to the death of Chief Warrant Officer Michael Kozloski, who was working in the buoy yard at the time of the accident. Local emergency medical services personnel performed CPR and transported him to South Peninsula Hospital where he was pronounced deceased.According to the U.S. Coast Guard investigation released on Tuesday, the improper operation of the crane was the result  leadership deficiencies aboard the Cutter Hickory…

The U.S. Coast Guard’s Pacific Area commander discussed the service’s new Arctic Strategic Outlook, Polar Security Cutters and innovation efforts to improve maritime domain awareness in the high latitudes April 26, 2019, during the Arctic Encounter Symposium in Seattle.During her keynote speech at the symposium, Vice Adm. Linda Fagan said, “The tyranny of distance and the harsh Arctic climate pose significant challenges to agencies charged with providing maritime safety and security to all Americans, including the hundreds of villages and thousands of seasonal workers in the U.S.

The U.S. Coast Guard's Pacific Area commander discussed the service's new Arctic Strategic Outlook, Polar Security Cutters and innovation efforts to improve maritime domain awareness in the high latitudes Friday during the Arctic Encounter Symposium in Seattle.During her keynote speech at the symposium, Vice Adm. Linda Fagan said, “The tyranny of distance and the harsh Arctic climate pose significant challenges to agencies charged with providing maritime safety and security to all Americans, including the hundreds of villages and thousands of seasonal workers in the U.S.

It seems the U.S. cannot do enough to fast-track the construction of its new icebreaking fleet, as the USCG announce last night that the 150-member crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star fought a fire at approximately 9 p.m. PST Feb. 10 that broke out in the ship's incinerator room about 650 miles north of McMurdo Sound, Antarctica.After initial response efforts using four fire extinguishers failed, fire crews spent almost two hours extinguishing the fire. Fire damage was contained inside the incinerator housing…

Like many boys, Charles. F. “Bud” Kirby, Jr. loved ships. He had drawings, models, pictures, newspaper clippings, and scrapbooks. And, as his son, Don, recently learned, he had cachet covers of submarines.Bud would send stamped envelopes to the Electric Boat Company that he had addressed to himself in Watertown, Mass. These envelopes would be stamped with a commemorative cachet and then appropriately cancelled at Groton, Connecticut, where the EB shipyard was located, or on the ship if it had been commissioned.Each ship has its own post office, and its own cancellation stamp.

Thanks to increasing levels of debt financing for climate-aligned projects, wind-generated power has become one of the fastest-growing green industries. Jessica Williams, an Infrastructure Analyst at S&P Global Ratings, considers the submarine technologies that are making this progress possible.Renewable energy is making an increasing contribution to the electrical grid. By the end of 2016, “green energy” sources accounted for almost a quarter of the world’s electricity supply, according to REN21.

The Coast Guard 14th District held a change of command ceremony bidding farewell to Rear Adm. Vincent B. Atkins and welcoming Rear Adm. Brian K. Penoyer, at Coast Guard Base Honolulu, Wednesday.Vice Adm. Fred M. Midgette, commander, Coast Guard Pacific Area presided over the ceremony.Penoyer has served as Atkins’ chief of staff since 2016, advising the district commander on all Coast Guard missions conducted in the central and south Pacific. He is a 2015 recipient of the Coast Guard’s Type I Incident Commander qualification…

The U.S. Coast Guard will offload more than 47,000 pounds of cocaine worth over $721 million Thursday at 9:30 a.m., which was seized in 23 separate interdictions in the eastern Pacific Ocean by U.S. and Canadian forces operating in international waters off the coast of Central and South America. Senior U.S. and Canadian officials will be at the offload to discuss new tactics used by transnational organized crime groups and to highlight international cooperation in combating the threat posed by these dangerous groups. U.S.

America’s aging, sole remaining heavy icebreaker suffered several engineering challenges, including flooding and engine failure, on its way to completing a recent mission in the Antarctic, highlighting the U.S.’ need for new polar icebreakers. The 1970s-era U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star is called upon each year to aid the delivery of fuel and supplies for National Science Foundation research stations in Antarctica, carving a navigable path through the Ross Sea where seasonal and multi-year ice is sometimes as much as 10 feet thick.

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Joseph Gerczak (WPC 1126), Hawaii's second Sentinel-class cutter, was commissioned into service at Coast Guard Base Honolulu, Friday. Vice Adm. Fred M. Midgette, commander, Coast Guard Pacific Area, presided over the ceremony accepting the second of three 154-foot fast response cutters to be stationed in Hawaii. The cutter's sponsor Stella Gerczak, who is Joseph Gerczak’s sister, was also in attendance at the ceremony. "We are excited to continue the…