ALCOAST 349/17 - NOV 2017 NEW FAST RESPONSE CUTTERS NAMED FOR COAST GUARD HEROES

R 221121 NOV 17
FM COMDT COGARD WASHINGTON DC//CG-092//
TO ALCOAST
UNCLAS//N05700//
ALCOAST 349/17
COMDTNOTE 5700
SUBJ:  NEW FAST RESPONSE CUTTERS NAMED FOR COAST GUARD HEROES
1. In 1830, the Revenue Cutter Service, predecessor to the modern Coast Guard
launched its first standardized multi-ship class of cutters. The Morris-
class, named for the first cutter in the class, Robert Morris, was designed
with a topsail-schooner rig and a length of 78 feet. These cutters carried
six 9-pound cannons and a crew of 24 officers and men.
2. The thirteen Morris-class cutters fought pirates, interdicted smugglers,
enforced federal maritime laws and operated with American naval forces in
time of war. In the years leading up to the American Civil War, Cutter Morris
and her sister ships formed the backbone of the revenue cutter fleet.
3. As with the Morris class, the Coast Guard is building a class of cutters
designed to serve a multi-mission role. The “Sentinel” - Class Fast Response
Cutters (FRC) perform drug and migrant interdiction; ports, waterways and
coastal security; fishery patrols; search and rescue; and national defense.
4. In the next few years, the Coast Guard will deliver 32 additional cutters
bringing our service numbers up to 58 FRCs intended to replace the fleet of
1980s-era 110-foot patrol boats. The FRCs feature advanced command, control,
communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance
equipment; over-the-horizon cutter boat deployment to reach vessels of
interest; and improved habitability and sea-keeping characteristics.
5. Twenty-six FRCs are currently in service, with six stationed in Miami
Beach, Florida; six in Key West, Florida; six in San Juan, Puerto Rico; two
in Ketchikan, Alaska; two in Cape May, New Jersey; two in Pascagoula,
Mississippi; and two in Honolulu, Hawaii.
6. As with their FRC sister cutters, the next flight of 19 FRCs will bear the
names of enlisted leaders, trailblazers and heroes of the Coast Guard and its
predecessor services of the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service, U.S. Lifesaving
Service and U.S. Lighthouse Service. These new cutters will be named for
Master Chief Angela McShan; Surfmen Pablo Valent and Frederick Hatch; Mustang
Officer Maurice Jester; Electrician Myrtle Hazard; Coxswains Harold Miller,
William Sparling, Daniel Tarr, Glenn Harris and Douglas Denman; Pharmacists
Mate Robert Goldman; Stewards Mates Emlen Tunnel and Warren Deyampert; Seamen
John Scheuerman and Charles Moulthrop; Boatswain’s Mates Clarence Sutphin and
Edgar Culbertson; and Keepers William Chadwick and John Patterson. These
enlisted namesakes include recipients of the Navy Cross Medal, Silver Star
Medal, Bronze Star Medal, Gold Lifesaving Medal, Silver Lifesaving Medal,
Navy & Marine Corps Medal and Purple Heart Medal.
7. The Fast Response Cutters are the mainstay of the Coast Guard’s coastal
patrol fleet, providing multi-mission capabilities and interagency
interoperability. For more information, check the Coast Guard Acquisition
Directorate’s FRC web page at: http://www.dcms.uscg.mil/Our-
Organization/Assistant-Commandant-for-Acquisitions-CG-9/Programs/Surface-
Programs/Fast-Response-Cutters/
8. RADM Peter W. Gautier, Director of Governmental and Public Affairs, sends.
9. Internet release authorized.