THE WATCH STAFF
The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) is in the midst of its largest shipbuilding period since World War II in an expansion the service’s commandant called crucial for Arctic operations.
Adm. Karl Schultz, speaking at the Surface Navy Association symposium January 12, 2022, said the service will christen its 10th national security cutter in May, USNI News reported January 16. The USCG is building a heavy icebreaker — the first in decades – and is also awaiting its first offshore patrol cutter, which is about 60% complete, Schultz said. Two more will follow.
Ultimately, Schultz would like to have six icebreakers within the fleet, and he said those conversations will continue this year, according to USNI News. The timeline has lagged because of supply issues brought on by the global pandemic, Schultz said.
“We have publicly stated that the delivery date for Polar Security Cutter No. 1 is going to be May 2025, so it slipped about a year,” Schultz said at the symposium, Seapower magazine reported January 12.
The U.S. polar icebreaking fleet currently consists of the heavy USCGC Polar Star, built in 1976, and the medium USCGC Healy, which is also used for research. In 2021, the Healy completed a circumnavigation of North America that included a transit of the Northwest Passage.
The strategic importance of the Arctic is growing because of melting sea ice brought on by climate change. Russia and non-Arctic state China are competing with the U.S. and its regional partners for newly accessible natural resources and shipping routes.
The Healy’s 22,000-mile voyage in 2021 was, in part, a training mission, which is important as the USCG seeks to increase its Arctic presence.
“It’s tough to be an Arctic nation when you have one heavy [ice] breaker that’s almost 50 years old and one medium breaker that’s really [for] science,” Schultz said, according to Seapower. (The USCGC Polar Star breaks through Antarctic ice in 2017. The Polar Star travels to McMurdo Station annually and breaks up miles of ice up to 21 feet thick.)
In the meantime, Schultz said, the Coast Guard has been sending its larger cutters into the High North for exercises with partners such as Canada, Denmark and the United Kingdom.
“It’s one of those places where very few of the Arctic nations outside of Russia have a whole lot of capacity,” Schultz said, noting that Russia currently holds the chairmanship of both the Arctic Council and the Arctic Coast Guard organization.
The planned changes to the fleet reflect the changes to Coast Guard operations, Schultz said, noting its missions outside U.S. waters.
“Well, I think we really play a key role in shaping the diction of global maritime security, global maritime safety, and I suspect navies around the world are recognizing that the language and purpose of coast guards are well supported to their interests and their sovereign interests,” Schultz said, according to USNI News. “And that’s why we’re adapting our operations abroad.”
IMAGE CREDIT: CHIEF PETTY OFFICER DAVID MOSLEY/U.S. COAST GUARD