USCGC Valiant

Last updated
USCGC Valiant WMEC-621.jpg
USCGC Valiant (WMEC-621)
History
Flag of the United States Coast Guard.svgUnited States
Builder American Ship Building Company, Lorain, Ohio
Laid down28 February 1966
Launched14 January 1967
Commissioned3 November 1967
Homeport Naval Station Mayport, Jacksonville, Florida
Identification
StatusIn active service
Badge USCGC Valiant (WMEC 621) CoA.png
General characteristics
Displacement759 tons
Length210 ft 6 in (64.16 m)
Beam34 ft (10 m)
Draught10 ft 6 in (3.20 m) max
Propulsion
  • Originally, 2 × Cooper-Bessemer Corporation FVBM-12 turbocharged diesel engines
  • Currently, 2 × V16 2,550 hp (1,902 kW) ALCO diesel engines
Speed
  • 14 knots (26 km/h) cruising
  • 20 knots (37 km/h) maximum
Range
  • 6,100-mile (9,820 km) at cruising speed
  • 2,700-mile (4,350 km) at max speed
Boats & landing
craft carried
  • 1 × 23 foot Over The Horizon (OTH)
  • 1 × 24 foot Cutter Boat Large (CBL)
Complement12 officers, 63 enlisted
Sensors and
processing systems		2 × AN/SPS-64 radar
Armament
Aircraft carried HH-65 Dolphin

USCGC Valiant (WMEC-621) is a United States Coast Guard multi-mission medium endurance cutter in service since 1967. Valiant is home ported in Jacksonville, Florida and operates in the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico for the Commander, Coast Guard Atlantic Area. Missions include search and rescue, maritime law enforcement, marine environmental protection, and national defense operations.

Contents

History

USCGC Valiant (WMEC-621) was laid down 28 February 1966 at American Ship Building Company, Lorain, Ohio, United States and launched on 14 January 1967. She is the seventh of sixteen cutters of her class. She was commissioned on 3 November 1967 at Galveston, Texas, her first homeport, where she served for 24 years.

In November 1991, Valiant was decommissioned for a mid-life overhaul. On January 7, 1994, Valiant was re-commissioned to her second homeport in Miami Beach, Florida. [1]

On August 8, 2012 Valiant arrived at her current homeport at Naval Station Mayport. [2]

Capabilities

Valiant normally carries 12 officers and 63 crewmembers. An important aspect of Valiant's design is the attention given to habitability. The ship has its own galley, sickbay; laundry, sewage treatment system, televisions, radios, and digital satellite television.

Powered by two V16 2,550 hp (1,902 kW) ALCO diesel engines, Valiant is capable of a maximum sustained speed of 18 knots (33 km/h). Valiant is equipped with two controllable-pitch propellers, which makes her highly maneuverable.

Valiant has a 25 mm machine cannon mounted on the bow and is capable of firing high-explosive projectiles at a rate of 180 rounds per minute. In addition, the vessel mounts two .50 caliber heavy machine guns. The 24-foot "Cutter Boat Large" (CBL) and the 23 foot "Over The Horizon" (OTH) are used to visit and board other vessels at sea. The special towing bitt on the fantail allows Valiant to tow vessels up to 10 times her size. Another feature of Valiant is her ability to carry a Coast Guard HH-65 Dolphin helicopter. The helicopter extends the ship's surveillance range for law enforcement and reduces response time for search and rescue mission.

Valiant's mission capabilities are greatly enhanced by sophisticated electronic equipment such as: a Global Positioning System, surface search radar with a computerized collision avoidance system, radio direction finders, fathometers, and different types of radios. [1]

Operational history

The Valiant docked in Miami. USCGS Valiant (WMEC-621) Miami.jpg
The Valiant docked in Miami.

Valiant played an important role in the 1980 Cuban Boatlift in conjunction with dozens of Coast Guard cutters, small boats, aircraft, and Navy vessels.

On 8 June 1990 the tanker Mega Borg's pump room exploded leaving the ship crippled, on fire and leaking oil. Responding rapidly to an event 60 miles (97 km) offshore, Valiant's crew overcame complex logistical problems to mount an effective fire fighting, salvage and pollution cleanup campaign.

Since 1994, Valiant has been actively engaged in Alien Migration Interdiction Operation (AMIO). Valiant recovered and interdicted over 500 Haitian and Cuban migrants during Operations Able Manner and Able Vigil. Valiant repatriated over 1,900 Haitian migrants from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to Port au Prince, Haiti over the course of 11 passages.

In 1996, Valiant was Patrol Commander for the Summer Olympic Sailing events in Savannah, Georgia, directing over 29 Coast Guard assets in providing security for 800 athletes from 98 countries. Following the Olympics, Valiant earned an overall excellence award at Refresher Training in Mayport, Florida, with an overall score of 98%. In 1997, Valiant participated in Operation Tradewinds and trained over 500 Caribbean Coast Guard members from 12 countries in damage control, engineering, and seamanship fundamentals.

In January 1999, Valiant escorted the merchant ship Cannes to the coastal waters of Galveston, TX. A boarding team from Valiant helped Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) 406 South search Cannes, resulting in the discovery of over 10,000 pounds of cocaine. Next, Valiant sailed to Mayport, Florida, where for the second time in a row the ship earned the Atlantic Area Commander's award for operational readiness at Tailored Ship Training Availability (TSTA) in February 1999.

Just after midnight on 7 November 1999, Valiant discovered a partially submerged vessel with a man on top of the sinking hull and another man floating in the water. The two men had been sailing back to Antigua when their boat started to take on water; soon afterwards a wave had capsized the boat. The two men spent over 30 hours in the water before Valiant's crew rescued them.

In November 1999, approximately 100 miles (160 km) south of St. Croix, Valiant rendezvoused with the British warship HMS Northumberland. A USCG LEDET boarding team aboard Northumberland intercepted the motor vessel Adriatik in the vicinity of Barbados. After three days, the boarding team found two and half tons of cocaine. The boarding concluded with the arrest of 13 crewmembers and the seizure of both the vessel and the cocaine.

During the passage of Hurricane Lenny in November 1999, Valiant led search and rescue efforts for two missing sailing vessels in the vicinity of Saba Island. For two days Valiant faced 10- to 15-foot swells and winds up to 60 knots (111 km/h). Valiant was the on-scene commander supervising the search efforts of 6 Coast Guard cutters and 29 aircraft assets. Valiant and its crew covered over 1250 miles searching for two missing sailboats. Despite locating over eight overturned and capsized vessels adrift in the area, only one survivor was found. [1]

In 2004, Valiant engaged in alien migration interdiction operations during the 2004 Haiti Rebellion near Port-au-Prince. [3] She repatriated 531 Haitians intercepted on boats as they tried flee the growing violence and turmoil fueled by rebel forces intent on removing President Jean-Bertrand Aristide from power. [4]

On 23 January 2010, Valiant assisted in the humanitarian relief efforts following the 2010 Haiti earthquake. [5]

On 24 September 2019, the Coast Guard reported that Valiant, along with four Colombian naval assets, intercepted a 40' long drug-smuggling semi-submersible carrying 12,000 lbs. of cocaine in the Pacific Ocean. The submersible was spotted by maritime aircraft prior to asking Valiant for assistance. The cocaine was estimated to be worth $165 million. Only 1,100 lbs. of the cocaine could be recovered from the submersible before it was sunk due to safety issues. The exact location where the submarine was found was not disclosed. Four men were taken into custody. [6] [7] [8]

Related Research Articles

USCGC <i>Acushnet</i> (WMEC-167) United States Coast Guard cutter

USCGC Acushnet (WMEC-167) was a cutter of the United States Coast Guard, homeported in Ketchikan, Alaska. She was originally USS Shackle (ARS-9), a Diver-class rescue and salvage ship commissioned by the United States Navy for service in World War II. She was responsible for coming to the aid of stricken vessels and received three battle stars during World War II, before a long career with the Coast Guard. Acushnet patrolled the waters of the North Pacific and was one of the last World War II era ships on active duty in the US fleet upon her retirement in 2011.

SLNS <i>Vijayabahu</i> (P627) United States Coast Guard cutter

SLNS Vijayabahu (P627) is an Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel of the Sri Lanka Navy. The ship is named after King Vijayabahu I, the warrior king of the medieval Sri Lanka who founded the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa.

NNS <i>Thunder</i> (F90)

USCGC Chase (WHEC-718) was a Hamilton-class High Endurance Cutter of the United States Coast Guard. She was laid down on October 26, 1966, at Avondale Shipyards in New Orleans, launched on May 20, 1967, and commissioned on March 11, 1968. Chase is the fourth of twelve Hamilton class, 378-foot (115 m) cutters, and the third cutter named in honor of Salmon Portland Chase. She was decommissioned on March 29, 2011, and transferred to the Nigerian Navy as an excess defense article under the Foreign Assistance Act as NNS Thunder (F90).

USCGC <i>Bertholf</i> Legend-class U.S. Coast Guard cutter

USCGC Bertholf (WMSL-750) is the first Legend-class maritime security cutter of the United States Coast Guard. She is named for Commodore Ellsworth P. Bertholf, fourth commandant of both the Revenue Cutter Service and Coast Guard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law Enforcement Detachments</span> Team of United States Coast Guard

Law Enforcement Detachments or LEDETs are specialized, deployable maritime law enforcement teams of the United States Coast Guard. First established in 1982, their primary mission is to deploy aboard U.S. and allied naval vessels to conduct counter-drug operations and support maritime law enforcement, interdiction, or security operations. LEDETs are the operational elements of the Coast Guard’s two Tactical Law Enforcement Teams (TACLETs) which are part of the Coast Guard’s Deployable Specialized Forces (DSF). As of April 2010 there are seventeen LEDETs.

The United States Coast Guard is the coastal defense, search and rescue, and maritime law enforcement branch of the United States Armed Forces and is one of the country's eight uniformed services. It carries out three basic roles, which are further subdivided into eleven statutory missions. The three roles are:

USCGC <i>Thetis</i> (WMEC-910)

USCGC Thetis (WMEC-910) is a United States Coast Guard Famous-class medium endurance cutter. She is the 10th ship of the Famous Class cutters designed and built for the U.S. Coast Guard and the third Coast Guard cutter to bear the name. Laid down August 24, 1984 by Robert Derecktor Shipyard Incorporated of Middletown, Rhode Island. She was launched April 29, 1986 and named for the cutters USRC Thetis, which served from 1899 to 1916, and USCGC Thetis (WPC-115), which served from 1931 to 1947. The Greek goddess Thetis, incidentally, was the mother of Achilles. The Famous Class cutter Thetis was commissioned on June 30, 1989. She conducts patrols throughout the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico.

USCGC <i>Tampa</i> (WMEC-902)

USCGC Tampa (WMEC-902) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter. She was commissioned 16 March 1984. Her motto, "Thy way is the sea, thy path in the great waters", matches the inscription that is engraved on the memorial at Arlington National Cemetery for the 131 persons lost following the sinking of a previous cutter Tampa on September 18, 1918.

USCGC <i>Spencer</i> (WMEC-905)

USCGC Spencer (WMEC-905) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter. Her keel was laid on 26 June 1982 at Robert Derecktor Shipyard Incorporated, Middletown, Rhode Island. She was named for John Canfield Spencer, United States Secretary of the Treasury from 1843 to 1844 under President John Tyler and launched on 17 April 1984 and was commissioned into service on 28 June 1986.

USCGC <i>Escanaba</i> (WMEC-907)

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.

USCGC <i>Campbell</i> (WMEC-909)

USCGC Campbell (WMEC-909) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter based at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. Campbell is the sixth Coast Guard Cutter to bear the name and is assigned to the Atlantic. The ship bears the distinction of having made some of the largest narcotics seizures in Coast Guard history as well as being the command ship for the TWA 800 recovery effort.

USCGC <i>Active</i> (WMEC-618)

USCGC Active (WMEC-618) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter. Active was launched at Christy Corporation, Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin on July 31, 1965. Commissioned on September 1, 1966, she is 210 feet (64 m) long, has a 34-foot (10 m) beam, displaces 1108 tons, and draws 13 feet (4.0 m) of water. She is powered by two diesel engines, combined for a total of 5,000 hp (3,700 kW). Quarters are provided for up to 12 officers and 70 enlisted members. Active's cruising range is 5,000 nautical miles (9,000 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h), designed with an operating endurance of about 30 days. At her top speed of 18 knots (33 km/h), Active has an approximate range of 2,200 nautical miles (4,070 km). Active's armament consists of a single 25 mm gun on the forecastle. The forecastle, bridge and fantail can also mount .50 caliber machine guns. The Active has a flight deck which allows for the deployment of a Coast Guard HH-65 Dolphin. USCGC Active has received several awards in recent years for its outstanding service to the maritime community, including oil spill clean ups in Prince William Sound, Alaska during the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

USCGC <i>Confidence</i> US Coast Guard vessel

USCGC Confidence (WMEC-619) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter.

USCGC <i>Resolute</i> US Coast Guard vessel

USCGC Resolute (WMEC-620) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter.

SLNS <i>Samudura</i> (P261) United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter

SLNS Samudura (P621) is a Sri Lanka Navy Offshore Patrol Vessel. Originally commissioned by the United States Coast Guard in 1968 as the medium endurance cutter USCGC Courageous, she was donated to Sri Lanka in 2004 and commissioned on 19 February 2005.

USCGC <i>Venturous</i>

USCGC Venturous (WMEC-625) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter. The vessel was constructed by the American Shipbuilding Company in Lorain, Ohio in 1967 and commissioned in 1968. The ship has served on both the west and eastern coasts of the United States. The vessel is used for search and rescue, fishery law enforcement, border enforcement and smuggling interdiction along the coasts and in the Caribbean Sea.

USCGC <i>Dependable</i> United States Coast Guard ship

USCGC Dependable (WMEC–626) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter. Dependable was commissioned November 22, 1968. On April 9, 2024 Dependable was removed from active duty and placed in commission, special status. Her most recent homeport was Virginia Beach, Virginia.

USNS <i>Vindicator</i> Stalwart-class surveillance ship

USNS Vindicator (T-AGOS-3) was a United States Navy Stalwart-class modified tactical auxiliary general ocean surveillance ship that was in service from 1984 to 1993. Vindicator then served in the United States Coast Guard from 1994 to 2001 as the medium endurance cutter USCGC Vindicator (WMEC-3). From 2004 to 2020, she was in commission in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) fleet as the oceanographic research ship NOAAS Hiʻialakai.

Ukrainian patrol vessel <i>Starobilsk</i> Island-class patrol boat of the Ukrainian Navy

The Ukrainian patrol vessel Starobilsk (P191) is an Island-class patrol boat of the Naval Forces of Armed Forces of Ukraine belonging to the 30th Surface Ships Division.

USCGC <i>Reef Shark</i> U. S. Coast Guard patrol boat

USCGC Reef Shark is the 69th Marine Protector-class coastal patrol boat to be built. Her home port is Juneau, Alaska, where she is moored in Auke Bay.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "History of USCGC Valiant". United States Coast Guard Atlantic Area, U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Defense Media Activity. Retrieved 2022-11-10.
  2. ↑ Mayport Mirror. .
  3. ↑ ""US Coast Guard Migrant Interdiction Operations"".
  4. ↑ ""Coast Guard repatriates Haitians who fled violence"". Archived from the original on January 19, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Coast Guard Sends Cutters, Aircraft to Haiti". Navy Times. 2010-01-13. Archived from the original on 2012-09-06. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  6. ↑ Coleman, Justine (2019-09-24). "Coast Guard stops self-propelled vessel holding more than $165M in cocaine". thehill.com. Retrieved 2019-09-24.
  7. ↑ Casiano, Louis (2019-09-24). "Coast Guard intercepts undersea vessel carrying $165M of cocaine". www.foxnews.com. Retrieved 2019-09-24.
  8. ↑ Zarrell, Matt (2019-09-24). "Submarine found in Pacific Ocean with $165 million in cocaine, Coast Guard says". abcnews.go.com. Retrieved 2019-09-24.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.