Sentinel class cutter
The Sentinel class Cutter, previously known as the Fast Response Cutter, is part of the United States Coast Guard's Deepwater program.[1][2] At 46.8 meters it is similar to, but larger than the 123-foot extended Island Class Cutters, like the USCGC Matagorda. 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.
Contents
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On March 14, 2007, Commandant Thad Allen announced that they had withdrawn from a contract for the construction of the vessels, but had not entirely cancelled the program.[3][4] The new program would focus more on "off-the-shelf" technology.
On September 26, 2008, Bollinger Shipyards was awarded US$88 million to build a prototype.[5] The cutter will be the first of a series of 24-34 43 meter cutters built to a design largely based on the Stan 4708 patrol vessels from the Netherlands firm the Damen Group.[6] The South African government employs similar vessels for environmental and fishery patrol.[7] The first cutter will be named USCGC Bernard C. Webber, and all future Sentinel Class will be named after enlisted Coast Guard heroes.[8] Bernard C. Webber will be stationed in Miami. The Bernard C. Webber was launched on Thursday, April 21, 2011, and commissioned on Saturday, April 14, 2012 at the Port of Miami.[9]
Design
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.[10] 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, fixed pitch rather than variable pitch propellers, stern launch capability, and watertight bulkheads.[11]
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.[12]
| 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 | Miami, FL | Under construction, launched[13] | |
| William Flores | WPC 1103 | Bollinger Shipyards | 2011-11-10 | Miami, FL | Under construction, launched[14] | |
| Robert Yered | Bollinger Shipyards | Under construction | ||||
| Margaret Norvell | ||||||
| Paul Clark | ||||||
| Charles David | ||||||
| Charles Sexton | ||||||
| Kathleen Moore | ||||||
| Joseph Napier | ||||||
| William Trump | ||||||
| Isaac Mayo | ||||||
| Richard Dixon | ||||||
| Heriberto Hernandez |
Namesakes
The Coast Guard has named the first twelve personnel the vessel will be named after, and has provided biographies of them.[15] 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.
Specifications
| displacement | 353 long tons |
| length | 46.8 meters |
| beam | 8.11 meters |
| propulsion |
|
| speed | 28 knots |
| range | 2500 nautical miles |
| mission endurance | 5 days |
| boats | 1 x Short Range Prosecutor RHIB |
| complement | 2 officers, 20 crew |
| armament |
|
| depth | 2.9 meters |
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sentinel class cutter. |
- ↑ Christopher P. Cavas (2009-09-30). "U.S. Coast Guard Chooses New Patrol Boat". Defense News. http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=3750683. Retrieved 2009-10-13.
- ↑ "Fast Response Cutter (FRC)". Integrated Deepwater System Program. http://www.uscg.mil/deepwater/system/frc.htm. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
- ↑ "Coast Guard reassigns Deepwater replacement patrol boat acquisition project". United States Coast Guard. 2007-03-14. https://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/786/150630/. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
- ↑ "U.S. Coast Guard Running Out of Ships". Strategy Page. 2007-03-25. http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htsurf/articles/20070325.aspx. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
- ↑ "Acquisition Directorate: Newsroom". United States Coast Guard. Archived from the original on 2009-10-08. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.uscg.mil%2FacquisITION%2Fsentinel%2Fnewsroom.asp&date=2009-10-08.
- ↑ "SENTINEL Class Patrol Boat: Media Round Table". United States Coast Guard. 2008-09-30. Archived from the original on 2009-10-03. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.uscg.mil%2FACQUISITION%2Fnewsroom%2Fpdf%2Fsentinelmediabrief.pdf&date=2009-10-03.
- ↑ "Damen Stan Patrol Vessel 4708: Lillian Ngoyi". Damen Group. Archived from the original on 2009-10-11. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.damen.nl%2FUpload%2FPDF%2FmID_6129_cID_5140_Lilian-Ngoyi.pdf&date=2009-10-11.
- ↑ http://www.uscg.mil/announcements/alcoast/132-10_alcoast.txt ALCOAST 132/10
- ↑ http://www.uscg.mil/acquisition/newsroom/updates/sentinel040910.asp Acquisition Directorate Newsroom
- ↑ "Short Range Prosecutor (SRP)". Integrated Deepwater System Program. http://www.uscg.mil/deepwater/system/srp.htm. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
- ↑ "Bollinger awarded potential $1.5 billion FRC contract". Marine Log. 2009-09-26. Archived from the original on 2009-10-10. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.marinelog.com%2FDOCS%2FNEWSMMVII%2F2008sep00261.html&date=2009-10-11.
- ↑ Michael Valliant (2010-11). "Fast Response Cutters: The Heroes of the Coast Guard Fleet". United States Coast Guard. p. 1. http://www.uscg.mil/acquisition/newsroom/pdf/CG9newsletterNov10.pdf. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
- ↑ "Acquisition Update: Second Fast Response Cutter Launched; Named for Coast Guard Hero, Richard Etheridge". USCG. 2011-08-19. http://www.uscg.mil/acquisition/newsroom/updates/sentinel081911.asp. Retrieved 2011-10-15. "The third Fast Response Cutter, the William Flores, is tentatively scheduled to be launched on Nov. 10." mirror
- ↑ "USCG’s Third Fast Response Cutter Launched". Military.com. 2011-11-29. http://www.military.com/news/article/coast-guard-news/new-cg-cutter-named-for-local-hero.html. Retrieved 2011-12-02. "The vessel was named after Seaman Apprentice William Flores, who posthumously received the Coast Guard Medal, the service’s highest award for heroism not involving combat, for his role in the Jan. 28, 1980 collision between the Coast Guard Cutter Blackthorn and the tanker Capricorn." mirror
- ↑ Stephanie Young (2010-10-27). "Coast Guard Heroes". United States Coast Guard. http://coastguard.dodlive.mil/2010/10/coast-guard-heroes/. Retrieved 2012-04-20.
External links
- "deckplan of the USCGC Sentinel". Marine Log. Archived from the original on 2009-10-11. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.marinelog.com%2FIMAGESMMVII%2Fsentinelinterior520.jpg&date=2009-10-11.ja:センチネル型カッター
