Investments in the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) Regiment’s maritime security capabilities have started to bear fruit. An October 2026 report in Baird’s Maritime, a U.S. news site, touted the addition of a third Safe Boat patrol vessel to the Regiment’s fleet as crucial in a May interdiction that netted 240 Haitian migrants, a highlight of TCI-United States collaboration in deterring illegal migration in the southeastern maritime approaches to the U.S.
The TCI Regiment, an overseas home defense unit under the British Army, commissioned the patrol boat James Fulford in Grand Turk in February, adding a third full-cabin, outboard-powered boat to a fleet used to police the islands’ territorial waters, according to Baird’s. Safe Boats International of Bremerton, Washington, built the vessel, the third delivered to the TCI Regiment since signing a 2014 contract for three patrol vessels. The 10-meter vessel was named after James Edward “Bobby” Fulford, a World War II veteran from Grand Turk, Baird’s reported. The James Fulford was the final vessel to be delivered, according to TCI Sun. The vessels form part of the Regiment’s newly constituted Maritime Troop, the newspaper said.
The patrol vessel is mobile enough to be transported via trailer between TCI’s many islands. It also has a shallow enough hull to beach on isolated islets, according to the company website. The vessel is outfitted with “performance wings,” stabilizing the vessel during quick maneuvers. Tinted overhead windows in the cabin aid in tracking aircraft or a target. The patrol vessel has a swing-down radar pod above the cabin and a thermal camera, according to Baird’s.
Aft, a cuddy, with ample space and amenities, allows for the transportation of people under suspicion of illegal activity. The vessel also has night-vision capability.
On May 31, 2026, the James Fulford intercepted a vessel with 240 illegal migrants aboard in TCI territorial waters. The U.S. Coast Guard Southeast District command center had received a report of an overloaded boat taking on water about 24 kilometers south of the islands, and aircrew from Coast Guard Air Station Miami guided the Regiment and Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force marine units to the scene.
The 240 Haitians were handed to the police marine branch and then to the TCI Border Force for health and security screening. The operation demonstrated the TCI Regiment’s crucial role in rescuing illegal migrants at sea aboard leaky, unseaworthy vessels. There were no casualties or injuries.
In 2025, TCI’s government authorized a major defense outlay to provide adequate maritime capabilities to secure TCI’s waters. The United Kingdom also has provided naval assistance in recent years.