A United States Coast Guard cutter intercepted a self-propelled semi-submersible submarine as part of a Coast Guard operation in the eastern Pacific that netted $49.3 million in cocaine, which the ship offloaded in Florida in March 2026. The Coast Guard has stepped up operations in the region to support Operation Pacific Viper. Since August, the Coast Guard has seized nearly 91,000 kilograms of cocaine and apprehended 150 suspected drug smugglers, according to an agency news release.
After the submarine was spotted by a maritime patrol plane on February 24, the Coast Guard cutter Forward deployed a pursuit boat and an MH-65 helicopter to intercept the vessel. After the semi-submersible’s crew ignored verbal commands to stop, the boarding team accessed the vessel and captured four crew members. The submarine later flooded and sank, a Coast Guard news release stated.
Cmdr. Andrew Grantham, commanding officer of the Forward, said the Coast Guard routinely intercepts semi-submersible submarines, which have become a common way for narco-terrorists to smuggle drugs to the U.S. They are designed to move large cargos. The intercepted vessel was more than 21 meters long and carried up to almost 8,000 kilograms, he said, according to the release. “Stopping this vessel demonstrates the exceptional skill and dedication of the Forward crew … Joint Interagency Task Force South, and Coast Guard District Southwest at imposing significant costs on transnational crime organizations,” Grantham said.
The Forward, an 82-meter medium-endurance cutter, frequently counters drug smuggling in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean regions. The ship’s home port is Portsmouth, Virginia. On its most recent mission, the ship cooperated with other Coast Guard assets in the region. Earlier in February, a Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron (HITRON) air crew deployed from the Coast Guard cutter Spencer to disable a smuggling vessel with airborne use-of-force tactics before a boarding team seized 2,919 kilograms of cocaine. On March 8, the Forward disabled a smuggling vessel after it was a located by maritime patrol aircraft with another airborne use-of-force maneuver from its embarked HITRON air crew. The crew seized 59 kilograms of cocaine. “The Coast Guard continues increased operations to interdict, seize and disrupt transshipments of cocaine and other bulk illicit drugs by sea. These drugs fuel and enable cartels and transnational criminal organizations to produce and traffic illegal fentanyl, threatening the United States,” the release stated.