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Unit Summary
Homeported in St Ignace, Michigan since her
commissioning on December 8, 1979, the cutter BISCAYNE BAY is the fourth
vessel of the Coast Guard’s 140 ft “Bay” class. This class of
icebreaking harbor tug was designed to replace an aging fleet of 110 ft
harbor tugs and to meet the Coast Guard’s domestic icebreaking
responsibilities well into the next century.
Built in Tacoma, Washington by Tacoma Boatbuilding, BISCAYNE BAY’s
primary mission is maintaining tracks in the connecting waterways in the
Great Lakes and assisting vessels through the icebound shipping lanes of
the Great Lakes. Her primary areas of operation are the Straits of
Mackinac and the St Marys River. The cutter also frequently operates in
the St. Clair/Detroit River system, Green Bay, Duluth, Minnesota, and
Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Because of the need for larger and stronger icebreakers, BISCAYNE BAY
was designed with many new innovations aimed at increasing her
icebreaking capabilities. This vessel has greater horsepower,
displacement, and a wider beam than the older icebreaking tugs it
replaced. In addition, she is equipped with a hull air lubrication
system, commonly referred to as a “bubbler” system. The bubbler forces
large quantities of low pressure air through ports along both sides of
the cutter’s hull. The air then rises to the surface, causing an upward
flow of water, which acts as a lubricant between the hull and the ice.
This greatly reduces the friction caused by the contact of ice and snow
on the cutter’s hull, thus making it possible to go through a given
thickness of ice using less horsepower.
There are other improvements included in this vessel’s design: greater
speed enables BISCAYNE BAY to reach operational areas sooner, an
increased fuel capacity gives this vessel twice as much cruising range
as the older icebreaking tugs, and the capability of remaining underway
for 7 days make her ideally suited to support the broad range of other
missions she is assigned to in the Great Lakes. The cutter’s other
missions include Search and Rescue, Maritime Law Enforcement, Port,
Waterways, and Coastal Waterways Security, Public Affairs, Marine
Environmental Protection, and Homeland Security.
The designed capabilities of the BISCAYNE BAY coupled with the
“optimally manned” crewing concept, results in the most economical, yet
efficient, resource to serve the public.
Unit Awards
Meritorious Unit Commendation 16 Oct 1990 - Salvage of USCGC MESQUITE
Unit Commendation 06 Jan 1995 - DOMICE
Unit Commendation 19 Oct 1996 - Winter Operations
Coast Guard Team Award 09 Sept 1997 - Coast Guard Festival, Grand Haven, MI
Coast Guard Team Award 22 Jan 1998 - ATON Battery recovery operations
Letter of Appreciation 04 Apr 2001 - SAR response Beaver Island, MI
Special Operations Service Ribbon 20 Mar 2002 - Tall Ships
Meritorious Team Commendation 05 Dec 2002 - Chicago safety zone patrol
Special Operations Service Ribbon 12 Mar 2011 - Operation Coal Shovel
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