Coast Guard News – Page 2 – Pacific Maritime Magazine

Coast Guard Cutter Healy Embarks on Arctic Ocean Mission

The Coast Guard cutter Healy and a team of researchers have embarked on a months-long mission to gain insight on how warmer water from the Atlantic Ocean is being introduced into the Arctic at the shelf water level, deep basin interior and upper ocean. The mission was announced by the U.S. Coast Guard on Aug. 26. According to the USCG, researchers from the National Science Foundation and International Arctic Research Center will service the Nansen and Amundsen Basins Observational System (NABOS), in hopes of developing an understanding of water circulation in the region and will sample the water column in…

U.S. Coast Guard Alaska Responds to Multiple Fishing Vessel Medevacs

On Aug. 25, Coast Guard District 17 command center personnel received a medevac request from the fishing vessel Northern Eagle at 6:20 a.m. for a 26-year-old crewmember experiencing abdominal pain. An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter air crew launched from Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak and hoisted the crewmember at 8:15 p.m. about 23 miles northwest of St Paul Island. The man was then flown to St. Paul where he was transferred to commercial emergency medical services at 9 p.m. for further care in Anchorage. Also on Aug. 25, Coast Guard District 17 command center personnel received a medevac request from…

Coast Guard Cutter Healy Gets New C.O., Departs for Arctic

Capt. Michele Schallip on June 29 returned for a second tour as commanding officer of the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Healy, one of two active icebreakers homeported in Seattle. Commissioned in 1999, the Healy is the newest, largest and most technologically advanced icebreaker in the Coast Guard’s fleet. Adm. Linda Fagan, commandant of the US. Coast Guard presided over the change of command ceremonies in Seattle in which Schallip relieved Capt. Kenneth Boda as commanding officer. Schallip previously served as the ship’s executive officer from 2018 to 2020. Boda service as the Healy’s commanding officer began in June 2021. Twice…

Fishing Boat Operator Sentenced for Human Smuggling, Ramming Coast Guard Vessel

A man who was piloting a panga boat has been sentenced to prison following a December incident where he intentionally rammed a Coast Guard vessel while smuggling nearly a dozen migrants in the San Diego area. Jesus Alcaraz-Valdez was sentenced in federal court on July 12 to 60 months in prison for bringing in nearly a dozen undocumented migrants for financial gain and ramming a Coast Guard vessel in an attempt to escape law enforcement. During the early morning hours of Dec.17, Alcaraz shuttled the undocumented migrants from Mexico across the maritime boundary line to the vicinity of the Hotel…

Coast Guard Confiscates $158M in Narcotics in Eastern Pacific Ocean

Crew aboard the Coast Guard cutters Steadfast, Vigilant and Mohawk confiscated millions of dollars in illegal drugs during counter-narcotics patrols in the Eastern Pacific Ocean from May through July, the Guard announced this week. On July 17, the crew of the Steadfast offloaded over 11,600 pounds of cocaine and 5,500 pounds of marijuana worth an estimated $158 million in San Diego. “Their unwavering commitment while interdicting drug smugglers at sea is not only commended, but their continued efforts are unmatched,” Coast Guard Eleventh District Commander Rear Adm. Andrew Sugimoto said. “The crew of the Steadfast worked incredibly hard, day and…

Coast Guard Conducts Compliance and Port Security Operation in Guam

On June 15, a U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam team conducted a port state control examination on the 472-foot Singapore-flagged commercial cargo vessel Kota Raja at the Port of Guam. Examiners found no significant deficiencies aboard, but Coast Guard officials said the examination “highlights the importance and impact of mariners taking the port security requirements seriously.” “The attention paid by examiners conducting multiple compliance inspections and exams on vessels in the area highlights the strategic value of Guam’s port to the people of Guam and the wider region,” the Coast Guard said in a statement. The port state control…

Coast Guard Completes Salvage of Passenger Charter Vessel Near Santa Cruz Island

The Coast Guard and the California Office of Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR) completed the salvage operation of the charter passenger vessel Sea Jay near Santa Cruz Island on June 17. This operation included underwater assessment, re-floating, stabilization and the safe transfer of the vessel to harbor. The removal operation followed the successful rescue of 14 people who abandoned the charter passenger vessel near Santa Cruz Island, off the coast near Los Angeles. During the 21-hour removal operation, divers first assessed the underwater condition of the Sea Jay, gathering information to help guide the subsequent steps. Then, the team refloated…

Polar Star Home After Operation Deep Freeze

On April 10, the Coast Guard cutter Polar Star and its crew returned to Seattle following a 144-day deployment to Antarctica in support of Operation Deep Freeze 2023. This was the Polar Star’s 26th voyage to Antarctica for Operation Deep Freeze, which is an annual joint military service mission to resupply the U.S. Antarctic stations, in support of the National Science Foundation, the lead agency for the U.S. Antarctic Program. This year marks the 63rd iteration of the annual operation. The Polar Star is a 399-foot heavy polar icebreaker commissioned in 1976. It weighs 13,500 tons and is 84-feet wide…

Coast Guard Cutter Stratton Departs Japan

Northern California-based U.S. Coast Guard cutter Stratton departed Yokosuka, Japan on May 3, following a scheduled port visit while deployed to the Indo-Pacific. Stratton is currently deployed in the Indo-Pacific to engage with ally and partner nations and to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific. “Deploying U.S. Coast Guard assets to the Indo-Pacific promotes security, safety, sovereignty and economic prosperity in the region while strengthening relationships between the U.S. and partner nations,” Stratton’s commanding officer, Capt. Brian Krautler said. Yokosuka was Stratton’s third port visit since departing its homeport of Alameda, California. The cutter’s crew was conducting exercises in the…

Northern Edge War Games Take Place in Gulf of Alaska

Thousands of U.S. military service members, five ships and over 150 aircraft were in Alaska from early-to-mid-May for Northern Edge 2023 (NE23), war games in the Gulf of Alaska and elsewhere in the state to enhance combat readiness. They were joined for the Indo-Pacific Command exercise by other service members from the United Kingdom and Australia to provide opportunity for joint, multinational and multi-domain operations designed to offer high-end, realistic war fighter training. Northern Edge got underway May 4 and continued through May 19. For security reasons, the start of the biennial training is never announced until it’s already underway.…