USCG Cutter Waesche Home from RIMPAC Exercises

The Coast Guard Cutter Waesche has returned to port at Coast Guard Base Honolulu, after spending three weeks at sea participating in Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2014 exercises, informs the US Coast Guard.

During the exercises Waesche demonstrated the Coast Guard’s unique capabilities and partnership with Department of Defense entities and international partners along the Pacific Rim by serving as the Combined Task Force 175 commander. While in this role, Waesche led vessels from China, Brunei, Mexico, France, Brunei, and the U.S., through numerous multinational exercises including ship handling, boarding exercises, replenishment at sea, and a live-fire gunnery exercise.

“RIMPAC gave us the unique opportunity to work closely with our Department of Defense services, as well as our international partners, in an environment where we were all able to learn from one another and apply those lessons in real-world scenarios,” said Capt. John McKinley, commanding officer of Coast Guard Cutter Waesche.

“Waesche’s crew demonstrated their professionalism every day of the exercise as they took part in the various scenarios whether they greeted service members from other countries aboard the cutter or they did their part visiting the other ships in exercise play.”
 
Homeported at Coast Guard Island in Alameda, Calif., Waesche, the second of eight planned National Security Cutters, is 418 feet long with a top speed of 28 knots, and a range of 12,000 nautical miles

Twenty-two nations, more than 40 ships and six submarines, about 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel participated in Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2014 Exercise from June 26 to August 1, in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California.

The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring the safety of sea-lanes and security on the world's oceans.