USCG commissions 22nd FRC
The US Coast Guard (USCG) has commissioned its 22nd Fast Response Cutter (FRC) Bailey Barco in Juneau, Alaska, the USCG announced on 15 June.
The cutter is the second FRC to be stationed in Ketchikan, Alaska, in the coast guard’s 17th District, which includes coastal and inland waters surrounding Alaska.
It features advanced command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance equipment; over-the-horizon boat deployment to reach vessels of interest and improved habitability and seakeeping.
The Sentinel class cutters, which are replacing the Island class 110ft patrol boats, have a top speed of over 28 knots and endurance of five days. They are designed for multiple missions, including drug and migrant interdiction, ports, waterways and coastal security, fishery patrols, search and rescue and national defence.
Of the 58 FRCs planned by the USCG, 38 have been ordered to date. Twenty-two FRCs are already in service.
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