| Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen | |
|---|---|
 Unit Patch CGAS Borinquen | |
| Active | 1976–present |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Coast Guard |
| Type | Air Station |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Captain Lawrence Gaillard |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Helicopter | MH-65D Dolphin MH-60 Jayhawk |
Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen is a United States Coast Guard Air Station located at the Rafael Hernandez International Airport (formerly Ramey Air Force Base), in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. [1]
United States Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen is the direct descendant of the former Coast Guard Air Station San Juan, which was located at the former Naval Air Station Isla Grande. In November 1971, the Air Station relocated to its present location at what was then Ramey Air Force Base, a Strategic Air Command (SAC) B-52 bomber and KC-135 aerial refueling aircraft base in Aguadilla, and became known as Coast Guard Air Station Puerto Rico. Two years later the United States Air Force discontinued its operation at Ramey AFB, turning the facilities over to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the United States Navy Naval Station Roosevelt Roads West Annex. The Coast Guard assumed the host role in July 1976, when the Navy vacated the station. It was then that the unit was designated Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen. The Air Station originally utilized three HU-16E Albatross amphibious seaplanes and two HH-52A Sea Guard helicopters to effect its search and rescue missions. In March 1973, three HH-3F Pelican helicopters replaced these aircraft.
The need for increased range for law enforcement and search and rescue resulted in the addition of four HU-25A Falcon jets to the Air Station's inventory in late 1983 and early 1984. In 1985, four new HH-65A Dolphin short-range rescue helicopters replaced the three HH-3F Pelicans, giving the Air Station a shipboard deployment capability. The HU-25As were replaced in 1987 by three HC-130H Hercules aircraft that provided long range search and surveillance capability until their departure in June 1996. Due to the increased tempo of operations in the Caribbean, the Air Station again added four HU-25As to the inventory from July 1999 until September 2001. The Air Station currently[ when? ] operates with 4 MH-65D Dolphin helicopters while also supporting a variety of other forward deployed aircraft. [2] [3]
U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen is under the operational control of Commander, the Seventh Coast Guard District. Its main operation is search and rescue missions, Secondary missions include: law enforcement, aerial support for ATON, and logistic support. Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen also provides support for U.S. Coast Guard vessels and aircraft, and other United States Department of Homeland Security agencies such as the CBP Air and Marine Operations and the United States Border Patrol Ramey Sector nearby the Air Station Borinquen.
The number of personnel at U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen is made of 170 enlisted personnel, 35 officers and 150 civilians.
The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) operates Ramey Unit School (Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 12). [4]
The military defense of Puerto Rico is the responsibility of the United States as part of the Treaty of Paris. Locally, Puerto Rico has its own National Guard, the Puerto Rico National Guard, and its own state defense force, the Puerto Rico State Guard, which, by local law, is under the authority of the Puerto Rico National Guard. The commander-in-chief of both forces is the governor of Puerto Rico, currently Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colón, who delegates his authority to the Puerto Rico Adjutant General, currently Major General José J. Reyes. The Adjutant General, in turn, delegates the authority over the State Guard to another officer but retains the authority over the Puerto Rico National Guard as a whole. At the national level, the commander-in-chief is the President of the United States, currently Donald J. Trump.
Aguadilla, founded in 1775 by Luis de Córdova, is a city and municipality located in the northwestern tip of Puerto Rico, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, north of Aguada, and Moca and west of Isabela. Aguadilla is spread over 15 barrios and Aguadilla Pueblo. It is a principal city and core of the Aguadilla-Isabela-San Sebastián Metropolitan Statistical Area. This region was already inhabited and known as Aguadilla before 1770. Nevertheless, according to Dr. Agustín Stahl in his Foundation of Aguadilla, it was not until 1780 that the town was officially founded. The construction of a new church and the proceedings to become an independent village began in 1775.
Rafael Hernández Airport, also referred to as the Rafael Hernández International Airport, is an airport located in the municipality of Aguadilla in northwestern Puerto Rico. Named after the composer Rafael Hernández Marín, it is the second-largest airport of the archipelago and island in terms of passenger traffic after the main airport of Luis Muñoz Marín International. It is also home to Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen and U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations. Set to be modernized, the 11,702 ft long runway of the airport is the longest in the Caribbean.
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The Sikorsky MH-60T Jayhawk is a multi-mission, twin-engine, medium-range helicopter operated by the United States Coast Guard for search and rescue, law enforcement, military readiness and marine environmental protection missions. It was originally designated HH-60J before being upgraded and redesignated in 2007.
Ramey Air Force Base also known as Borinquen Field, is a former United States Air Force base in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. It was named after United States Army Air Forces Brigadier General Howard Knox Ramey. Following its closure, it was redeveloped into Rafael Hernandez Airport.
A Coast Guard Air Station provides aviation support for the United States Coast Guard. The Coast Guard operates approximately 210 aircraft from 24 Coast Guard Air Stations in the United States. Fixed-wing aircraft, such as the HC-130 Hercules, are built for long range missions and operate from air stations. The air stations and facilities are also home to locally based MH-65D Dolphin and Sikorsky HH-60 Jayhawk helicopters and support rotor craft assigned to flight deck equipped cutters.
Aviation Survival Technician (AST) is a rating or job specialty in the United States Coast Guard. Rescue swimmer is the collateral duty or aircrew position of the AST. They are trained at the U.S. Coast Guard's enlisted Aviation Survival Technician/Rescue Swimmer school at Coast Guard Aviation Technical Training Center, Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City in Elizabeth City, North Carolina.
USCGC Escanaba (WMEC-907) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter based in Portsmouth, Virginia. Her keel was laid on April 1, 1983, at Robert Derecktor Shipyard Incorporated, Middletown, Rhode Island. She was launched February 6, 1985 and is named for her predecessor, USCGC Escanaba (WPG-77) which sank during World War Two, and was named for the Escanaba River and Escanaba, Michigan. Escanaba (WMEC-907) was formally commissioned August 29, 1987 in Grand Haven, Michigan, the home port of her predecessor.
The Puerto Rico Air National Guard(PR ANG) —Spanish: Guardia Nacional Aérea de Puerto Rico— is the aerial militia of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States of America. It is, along with the Puerto Rico Army National Guard and the Puerto Rico State Guard, an element of the Puerto Rico National Guard. After beginning as four units, the PRANG expanded to 11 units by the 1980s, including the 1956th Tactics Combat Group, the 140th Radar Squadron and others.
The Sikorsky S-61R is a twin-engine helicopter used in transport or search and rescue roles. A developed version of the S-61, the S-61R was also built under license by Agusta as the AS-61R. The S-61R served in the United States Air Force as the CH-3C/E Sea King and the HH-3E Jolly Green Giant, and with the United States Coast Guard as the HH-3F, nicknamed "Pelican". This article covers several different variants of this type in different roles, one major difference of the S-61R compared to the S-61 was a rear ramp.
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Punta Borinquén Light is a historic lighthouse located in the municipality of Aguadilla on the northwestern corner, known as Punta Borinquén, of the main island of Puerto Rico. Situated on the grounds of the former Ramey Air Force Base, the station was established in 1889 by the Spanish government. With the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914, the lighthouse would become "the most important aid to navigation on the route from Europe to Panama". In 1917, the U.S Congress provided funding for a new lighthouse in higher ground.
The Puerto Rico Joint Forces of Rapid Action —Spanish: Fuerzas Unidas de Rapida Acción (FURA)— is an agency within the Puerto Rico Police in charge of specialized divisions that relate to federal law enforcement agencies of the United States, and coordinate operations between the PRPD and U.S. federal agencies. The force is a limited unit, well trained, and well recognized in the police. The force collaborates with law enforcement agencies of the federal government of the United States such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the United States Marshals Service, and the Department of Homeland Security among others.
The 141st Air Control Squadron (ACS) is a unit of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard. It is a mobile radar command, control and communications element of the United States Air Force Theater Air Control System located at Punta Borinquen Radar Station near by Rafael Hernandez Airport formerly Ramey Air Force Base in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.
Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco is a United States Coast Guard Air Station located 13 miles (21 km) south of downtown San Francisco, California, at the San Francisco International Airport in an unincorporated area of San Mateo County. The air station sits adjacent to the airport which consists of its own ramp, one hangar, an administration building and several other support structures.
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Punta Borinquén Radar Station is a facility of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard home for the 141st Air Control Squadron. Located adjacent to Rafael Hernández Airport, in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. The facility has operated since 1964 when the 140th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron (ACWS) was created under the control of Air Defense Command (ADC).