During
the late-1970s and early 1980s the Coast Guard increased its capabilities to
meet the growing threat posed by maritime smugglers. The Service
tested and evaluated the surface effects ship [SES] Dorado (WSES-1)
for a period between 1981 and 1982 to test its effectiveness as a patrol
craft for the shallow waters around the coast of Florida. When the tests proved successful, the Coast Guard acquired three
SESs for active use: Sea Hawk (WSES-2); Shearwater (WSES-3);
and Petrel (WSES-4) beginning in the summer of 1982. On 1
November 1982 the Coast Guard established the Coast Guard Surface Effect
Ship Division in Key West, Florida. The Division was made up of these three SESs and included a support
staff. This was the first time a Coast Guard "division" of
cutters was formed since the Vietnam War. They were tasked with, as a
public affairs pamphlet noted: "maritime law enforcement, targeting
[their] efforts towards the interdiction of narcotics and controlled
substances smuggled into the United States
by sea. Not since Prohibition have Coast Guard cutters been
commissioned primarily to support maritime law enforcement. The
Division's secondary mission is in support of the Coast Guard's search and
rescue (SAR) duties." Those duties expanded as new problems
arose, including interdicting illegal migrants, enforcing fisheries
regulations, and operating in support of the Maritime Defense Zone
operations and exercises, particularly those duties involving mine
countermeasures and coastal defense.
These
cutters were unique. Although the Coast Guard had experimented with
non-traditional vessels such as hydrofoils as late as the 1970s, no such
craft had seen extensive service. These three SESs were an exception.
They were rigid sidewall hovercraft constructed of a lightweight aluminum
alloy. Their lift engines powered fans that created a pressurized air
cushion under the cutter, thereby lifting the craft, thus reducing drag and
draft. The solid sidewalls pierced the water, creating a catamaran
hull, and the air cushion was sealed by flexible rubberized skirts at the
bow and stern. This allowed these craft to operate at high speeds in
waters both shallow and deep, making them ideal patrol craft for the waters
off the coast of
Florida
and well out into the
Caribbean
. Their wide beam and the catamaran hull also made them extremely
stable craft, even in high seas.
The
vessels, Sea Hawk, Shearwater, and Petrel
were built by Bell Halter Incorporated of
New Orleans
at their facility at Chalmette,
Louisiana. Commissioned in the early 1980s the Division was based at
Key West, FL. The vessels of the Surface Effect Ship Division distinguished
themselves and were awarded multiple Coast Guard Unit Commendations with the
Operational Distinguishing device for their service in interdicting
narcotics smuggling and illegal migration and for the conduct of search and
rescue operations from November 1982 to January 1994. Finally, after over 11
years of successful service, the Division was stood down and the vessels
de-commissioned on 28 January 1994. Having faithfully performed their duty,
the vessels were laid up for storage at Key West.
Official
Coast Guard Imagery (click on thumbnail for High resolution image)
Caption/Historical
Information
Surface-Effect Ships
underway
Surface-Effect Ships
co-operating with a USCG Helicopter
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