Spar, 1944
WLB-403; WAGL-403
Call Sign: NODV
Spar is
the acronym for the Coast Guard's motto--Semper Paratus, Always
Ready and the cutter was named after the Coast Guard Women's
Reserve during World War II which were also known as SPARs.
Builder: Marine Iron and Shipbuilding
Corporation, Duluth, MN
Builder's Number: bn CG-165
Cost: $865,941
Length: 180' oa
Beam: 37' mb
Draft: 12' max (1945); 14' 7" (1966)
Displacement: 935 fl (1945); 1,026 fl (1966);
700 light (1966)
Keel Laid: 13 September 1943
Launched: 2 November 1943
Commissioned: 12 June 1944
Decommissioned: 28 February 1997
Status: Stored, Coast Guard Yard, Curtis Bay, MD as
of 28 June 1997
Propulsion: 1 electric motor connected to
2 Westinghouse generators driven by 2 Cooper-Bessemer-type GND-8, 4-cycle
diesels; single screw
Top speed: 13.0 kts sustained (1945); 11.9 kts
sustained (1966)
Economic speed: 8.3 kts (1945); 8.5 kts (1966)
Complement: 6 Officers, 74 men (1945); 4
officers, 2 warrants, 47 men (1966)
Electronics:
Radar: Bk (1943); SL (1945)
Sonar: WEA-2 (1945)
Armament: 1-3"/50 (single), 2-20mm/80
(single), 2 depth charge tracks, 2 Mousetraps, 4 Y-guns (1945); None
(1966)
Class History:
When the US Coast Guard absorbed
the Bureau of Lighthouses on 1 July 1939, Juniper,
a 177-foot all welded steel buoy tender, was under construction and
plans for a successor were on the drawing board. Plans initiated by the
Bureau of Lighthouses called for the construction of several identical buoy
tenders to replace existing coastal buoy tenders. The preliminary designs
generated by the Bureau were for a vessel similar to Juniper.
When the Aids to Navigation (ATON) system transferred to Coast Guard
control, USCG planners reviewed the preliminary plans for the new class of
buoy tenders and modified them to meet the service’s multi-mission role.
To be an effective part of the Coast Guard, the new buoy tenders needed to
be multi-purpose platforms. They had to be capable of conducting Search and
Rescue (SAR) and Law Enforcement (LE) missions, as well as their primary
mission tending ATON. On 20 January 1941 the US Coast Guard contracted
Marine Iron and Shipbuilding Company of
Duluth
,
Minnesota
to build the design based on Juniper and
modified to meet the service’s requirements. On 31 March 1941 Marine Iron
and Shipbuilding laid the keel for the first vessel of the new buoy tender
class. The new vessel measured 180 feet overall and had a beam of 37 feet at
the extreme. She had a displacement of 935 tons and drew 12 feet. The new
design was similar to Juniper in
appearance but did exhibit some important differences. Gone was the turtle
back forecastle. A notched forefoot, ice-belt at the waterline, and
reinforced bow gave the vessel icebreaking capabilities. Extending the
superstructure to the ship’s sides increased interior volume above the
main deck. A single propeller, turned by an electric motor powered by twin
diesel generators, replaced the twin-screw arrangement. The 30,000-gallon
fuel capacity gave the new design a range of 12,000 miles at a 12-knot
cruising speed; at 8.3 knots the cruising range increased to 17,000 miles.
Finer lines at the bow and stern increased the new tender’s sea keeping
ability in rough weather; an increase in draft also promoted seaworthiness.
Numerous minor alterations increased the vessel’s utility as a SAR
platform while deck-mounted guns and depth charge racks supported military
duties. Marine Iron and Shipbuilding launched the prototype vessel on
25 November 1941, even as three more took shape. Preparations also went
forward to begin a fifth vessel. By the time they commissioned the first
180, Cactus,
on 1 September 1942 twelve vessels were under construction at the Marine
Iron shipyard and at the Zenith Dredge Company shipyard, also in
Duluth
. The initial designation for the new buoy tenders was WAGL, which was a US
Navy designation denoting an auxiliary vessel, lighthouse tender. The
designation changed from WAGL to WLB in 1965. A few of the 180s have been
designated as other types of vessels over the years; three became WMECs
(medium endurance cutters), one of those, Evergreen,
was a WAGO (oceanographic research vessel) before it became a WMEC. Gentian
was a WMEC for a time and was then designated a WIX (Training Cutter) in
1999. Though designations have changed over time, each vessel’s hull
number has remained the same since commissioning.
DIFFERENCES WITHIN THE 180' CLASS
Six “B” or
Mesquite
class tenders followed the initial production run of thirteen vessels in the
“A’ or Cactus-class. The
first Mesquite-class tender hit
the water on 14 November 1942. Marine Iron and Shipbuilding built all except
one of the Mesquite-class. The
USCG built the lone exception, Ironwood,
at the service’s shipyard in Curtis Bay, Maryland. Twenty Iris
or “C” class vessels followed the Mesquite-class
tenders. The first launch of an Iris class
vessel took place on 18 June 1943, and the final addition to the class
slipped off the ways on 18 May 1944.
Differences among the three classes were minimal. Their basic dimensions,
length and beam were the same and draft varied based on loading. All were
built of welded steel along the same framing pattern and with very similar
internal and external layouts. All three classes could steam 8,000 miles at
13 knots, 12,000 miles at 12 knots, and 17,000 miles at 8.3 knots; though
the “B” and “C” class vessels had engines with 20 percent more power
than the “A” class. The “A” class vessels could carry the most fuel
with a tank capacity of 30,000 gallons. The “C” class carried 29,335
gallons and the “B” class about 700 gallons less. The layout of the
Commanding Officer’s cabin and the radio room was slightly different in
the “A” class vessels. The bridge wing door on the “B” and “C”
vessels opened to the side while the doors on the “A” vessels opened
forward. The cargo holds as originally laid out in the “C” were larger,
by a nominal amount, than those in the other vessels. To hoist buoys and
cargo, the “A” vessels carried an A-frame structure that straddled the
superstructure and supported the cargo boom. The other two classes were
fitted with power vangs that attached to the bridge wings and manipulated
the cargo boom. The “A” vessels were originally fitted with manilla line
as part of the cargo handling system while the second and third generation
vessels used wire rope. From the outside, other than the A-frame used in the
first production run, the three classes were almost indistinguishable. Over
the years their internal differences and variation in equipment were
minimized by successive overhauls and improvements. Moreover, it does not
appear that any one of the three classes was superior to the other two in
the eyes of the US Coast Guard administration or the men who manned the buoy
tender fleet. Tenders from each of the three classes remained in use past
the turn of the 21st century. It usually took from two to four
months between the time shipyard workers laid a keel and the day the vessel
slipped off the ways. Once launched, however, the tenders were far from
ready for service. The practice was to build the superstructure, finish the
interior, and complete the machinery installation while the vessel was
floating. Hence, on launch day the tenders were little more than finished
hulls. As the shipyard workers neared the end of the building process, the
Coast Guard would begin assigning officers and men to the vessels. Once each
vessel was complete and ready to enter active service, the US
Coast Guard commissioned her as part of the fleet. Often the commissioning
ceremonies took place after the tender had departed from
Duluth
and arrived at an initial duty station. For the 180s as a whole, it took an
average period of 308 days to go from the beginning of construction to
commissioning. Divided according to sub-class, the elapsed time from keel
laying to commissioning averaged 360 days for the Cactus-class;
323 days for the Mesquite-class;
and 269 days for the Iris-class.
The building process averaged 192,018 man-hours of labor per vessel. In
keeping with the Lighthouse Service practice of naming tenders after
foliage, all of the 180s were named after trees, shrubs, or flowers.
THE 180s GO TO WAR
Though the design was completed
before
US
entry into World War II, several of the vessels were already under
construction when the Japanese attacked
Pearl Harbor
; the tenders were very much a product of the war. The number of tenders
built and the rapidity with which the shipyards turned them out is
indicative of this nation’s massive industrial output during the war
years. Before the war, no group of thirty-nine steel ships had been produced
in three years. Yet, during the period 1941-1944 the entire production run
of the class went from blueprints to completed ships during a time when the
United States
was producing thousands of other ships at yards around the country. With the
lone exception of the tender built at the Coast Guard Yard at
Curtis
Bay
in
Baltimore
,
Maryland
, two commercial shipyards in
Duluth
,
Minnesota
built all the 180s. To achieve this level of production, even as much of the
prewar workforce volunteered or was drafted for military service, the
shipyards turned to a new source of labor. The Duluth
shipyards, like industrial operations nationwide, began to recruit women. As
Duluth
’s men filed off to war as soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines, Duluth
’s women filed into the shipyards to become welders, machinists, and
electricians. By the end of the war
Duluth
’s “welderettes” numbered 3,500 of the 14,000 persons laboring through
the cold
Minnesota
winters to turn out ships for the war effort. The total number of civilian
shipyard workers employed by Marine Iron and Zenith Dredge peaked at 1,200
and 1,500 respectively. Thus, the US Coast Guard 180s are historically
significant not only as the first class of modern buoy tenders and as part
of an unprecedented military build-up but also as milestones in labor
history American women helped build the 180s during the period when women
first began to enter the industrial workforce. Even after commissioning most
vessels did not immediately enter regular service. Instead the tenders
embarked on shakedown cruises to test the various mechanical, electrical,
and hydraulic systems. The shakedown cruises also offered an opportunity for
crew orientation and training. It was rare that the shakedown cruise did not
reveal some defective system and most vessels returned to a shipyard to have
any glitches repaired. Occasionally the return to the shipyard meant going
back to Zenith Dredge or Marine Iron and Shipbuilding in
Duluth
. Before deployment to their duty stations, other vessels went to the USCG
yard at
Curtis
Bay
which provided an opportunity to outfit the vessels with any additional
equipment or to carry out any modifications needed at the vessels’ new
duty stations.
The work done by the men and women
of Duluth
produced finished buoy tenders, but not warships. It would be up to military
technicians to make the 180s combat-ready. Many of the buoy tenders were
destined to operate far from home in a variety of war zones as part of a
navy locked in a two-ocean war. To defend themselves against air attack, the
tenders were fitted with 20mm guns, usually four of them, mounted high on
the superstructure and on the aft portions of the main deck. Armorers
outfitted the 180s with a single 3" cannon mounted aft of the stack to
defend against aircraft and engage small surface or shore targets. They
installed depth charge racks as well as K- and V-type launchers on the stern
to deploy depth charges in case the vessels ever encountered enemy
submarines. Some 180s were also fitted with a device known as a 'mousetrap'.
This weapon system launched rocket-propelled explosive charges that would
explode on contact with a submarine’s hull. The mousetrap system was
generally mounted on the bow so the launchers could fire ahead of the
vessel. Besides the heavier weapons systems, the tenders carried assorted
small arms. Technicians installed radar and sonar systems to help the 180s
find targets or avoid enemy units. The US Coast Guard shipyard at Curtis
Bay, Maryland carried out the bulk of the work that prepared the buoy
tenders for duty overseas.
Buoy tenders from the 180 classes
operating in the Atlantic Theater saw service from the frigid waters around
Greenland to the tropical coast of
Brazil
. They tended buoys, broke ice, and provided assistance to vessels in need.
They also served as the armed escorts for merchant convoys, hunted U-boats,
and carried supplies to far-flung installations. The 180s were not limited
to coastal duty. Several vessels in the class were dispatched thousands of
miles out into the Atlantic to collect important meteorological data that
allowed military planners to schedule and route aircraft flights to
Europe
. In the Pacific Theater the 180s covered thousands of miles of open
ocean in pursuit of their varied duties. Several vessels worked to establish
Long-Range Aids-to-Navigation (LORAN) station chains in the South Pacific
while others conducted similar operations in the
Bering Sea
. Navy commanders regularly dispatched 180s to carry supplies and personnel
between installations throughout the theatre. The lift capacity and towing
features of the tenders helped them carry out salvage work. The 180s fought
shipboard fires and rescued Allied personnel from damaged vessels. Besides
this range of duties, all the tenders fulfilled their design function on a
regular basis. They serviced ATON along the West Coast, in the waters of the
Bering Sea
, and across the Pacific. They also set and serviced moorings and mooring
buoys for naval and merchant vessels throughout the war zone. Their ATON
work was especially important since many of the areas in which
U.S.
forces operated were very poorly charted or uncharted altogether. The work
done by the 180s allowed thousands of Allied ships to operate along routes
and in harbors far removed from pre-war shipping lanes. The buoy tenders
never received the acclaim afforded larger warships, but their efforts did
not go unnoticed. In the words of a contemporary observer:
As
the battleships and assault troop and cargo ships do the heavy work, the
Coast Guard tenders scurry alongside, paving the broken way for the miracle
of supply which follows. They'll lay cables in the ocean bed, fight fires
and perform rescue and salvage chores. A tender may moor an anchor for
battleships or tow a Navy seaplane caught on a reef-it's all in a day's
work.
None of the 180s were lost to
enemy action during the war. Those in the Atlantic Theater operated under
the threat of German U-boats, but the few encounters saw the cutters
dropping depth charges on the suspected positions of submerged U-boats and
receiving no return fire. A German U-boat sank one U.S. Coast Guard buoy
tender from another class, Acacia (WAGL-200), while she operated in
the
Caribbean Sea
. Acacia was one of the ex-Army mine-planters acquired by the
Lighthouse Bureau after WWI. The USCG named a "C" class 180 in
honor of the sunken vessel. Though
the 180s serving in the Pacific came under enemy air attack on many
occasions, no severe damage resulted. The 180s contributed to the screen of
anti-aircraft fire around the fleet during air raids and shot down
several enemy aircraft while contributing to the destruction of others. One
tender suffered significant damage from an explosion attributed to a
floating Japanese mine. There were no encounters between the buoy tenders
and Japanese submarines or surface units. Weather was also a formidable
adversary. Tenders operating in the northern reaches of both oceans
frequently battled ice and snow as they went about their work. Tenders in
the Atlantic Theatre were subjected to dangerously high winds and waves
during storms, especially during winter storms on the
North Atlantic
. They also had to dodge hurricanes sweeping up from the tropics during the
summer and fall months. The Pacific 180s, besides normal ocean storms, were
subjected to the fury of powerful typhoons that regularly sank large ships.
Heat was a problem in both theatres and, while never a grave threat to the
vessels; it made life unpleasant for crews operating near the equator in the
days before air conditioning. The 180s survived enemy action and the dangers
of operating in the maritime environment in any weather. Every vessel
survived the conflict and the class provided valuable service in the war
effort. Their endeavors made possible the safe navigation of thousands of
warships and merchantmen as the Allied powers dispatched convoys, battle
groups, and invasion fleets to the far reaches of the Pacific and set up a
floating conveyor belt carrying millions of tons of war materiel across the
Atlantic.
PEACETIME MISSIONS
While a few vessels were left
overseas to repair and improve ATON systems in the various Pacific island
groups, most of the 180s returned to the
United States
where their wartime crews returned to civilian life. The drop in military
manning levels, however, was so precipitous that the US Coast Guard had to
decommission several 180s temporarily, simply because there were no crews
available. Like their crews returning to civilian life, the buoy tenders
themselves underwent a radical change in appearance. Black hulls and
gleaming white topsides replaced the haze gray and oceanic camouflage
schemes that helped to hide the tenders from enemy eyes during the war
years. Shipyard workers stripped depth charge racks and mousetrap launchers
from the vessels. Cutters re-assigned to the
Great Lakes
had their 3" and 20mm guns removed.. Those remaining overseas or
assigned to coastal districts kept some of their armaments, but the guns
spent most of their time concealed beneath canvas covers. With the war’s
end service on the buoy tenders was more mundane. Instead of operating as
part of vast naval fleets and anchoring in the company of battleships, the
180s went about their prescribed missions alone. For the most part they
spent their time tending buoys and other ATON. This was an especially
important part of returning American maritime commerce to a peacetime
footing as some ATON were neglected during the war while others were
purposely disestablished to prevent their use by enemy forces. Similarly,
many ATON established during the war required removal, as they were
non-essential to normal maritime commerce. Most buoy tenders returning
stateside quickly joined their domestic counterparts in an unending routine
of hauling buoys, carrying out maintenance on various ATON, and delivering
supplies to out of the way navigational installations.
TENDING BUOYS
The process of tending or
servicing buoys has been the basic mission of the 180s throughout their
careers. It is a process that has evolved through several important
technological changes but one that remains fundamentally the same. Tending
an ATON begins with traveling to its location and making contact. Once on
scene, the conning officer maneuvers the vessel alongside the buoy so the
deck force can snag it with reaching poles. Approaching a buoy is often a
tricky and hazardous proposition since the marker's very purpose is often to
mark shallow water or other hazards to navigation. The difficult nature of
the task is reflected in the records of frequent groundings by the buoy
tender fleet. The 180s original design, specifically single screw
propulsion, meant they were not the most maneuverable platforms and required
a skilled ship handler to bring them alongside an ATON. The addition of bow
thrusters during later renovations
made them more nimble during close quarters maneuvering. Once
alongside a buoy, the deck crew snags it and then attaches the hook from the
cargo boom to a lifting eye on the marker. Then the boom operator lifts the
buoy out of the water and deposits it on the open well deck in front of the
superstructure where it is secured. The process of recovering the buoy has
not changed in any appreciable way over the years. Bringing the buoy on
board is less than half the recovery process. A concrete block or 'sinker'
weighing many thousands of pounds anchors each buoy. Heavy steel chain links
the anchor block to the floating buoy. In order to conduct a thorough
inspection of the whole system, the chain and sinker must be brought up. The
mooring chain is led through a chain stopper on the edge of the well deck.
The chain stopper is a mechanical device that prevents chain from slipping
back overboard, essentially a one-way valve for chain. After the chain is
secure in the chain stopper the boom operator reaches as far down the chain
as possible and snags a length of chain, which is pulled up, laid in the
chain stopper, and secured on deck with quick-releasing pelican clamps as a
safety mechanism. Once the chain is secure, the boom snags another length
and hauls it up. In this hand-over-hand fashion the boom operator hauls up
the entire mooring. Often the sinker is left hanging overboard on the
outside of the chain stopper. This part of the recovery process has changed
since the 180s entered service. Initially, the vessels did not have a chain
stopper mechanism, and chain was secured only by tie downs when the boom
released one length to grab another. The crew of
Tupelo
is credited with inventing and demonstrating the value of a prototype chain
stopper in 1948. With buoy, chain, and sinker resting on the buoy deck, or
secured in the chain stopper, the deck force can begin working. This is the
opportunity to inspect the whole system and do any needed painting, repair
any structural damage, and check the batteries if it is a lighted ATON. The
biggest change in this area over the years has been the shift from gas to
electric lights, followed by the addition of solar panels to lighted buoys.
The panels greatly extend battery life, thereby making battery replacement a
less common chore. Sweetgum conducted the first at-sea
“solarization” of a lighted buoy. At present all lighted buoys mount
solar panels to extend battery life and improve the reliability of the
light. Once serviced, the buoy must
be returned to its charted position. Similarly, new or replacement buoys
must be placed exactly on station. To accomplish this task, navigators feed
information from the ship's satellite navigation system to the conning
officer who guides the vessel to the correct place over the sea bottom. Once
on station the bridge tells the deck force to release the sinker. A blow
with a sledgehammer trips the chain stopper's release mechanism. This
release sends the sinker to the bottom. The deck crew cuts or releases any
tie downs securing the chain to the deck. The process of finding the exact
position where the sinker belongs has changed dramatically over time. Prior
to the introduction of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) the conning officer
was directed to the correct spot by a team of at least three crewmembers
using survey sextants to measure horizontal angles to known landmarks
visible from the vessel. This process, while accurate when done by
experienced navigators, was time consuming and entailed more chance for
error than today's use of computerized navigation systems. The shift from
sextants to differential GPS has improved the efficiency of repositioning
ATON. Not all buoy stations are within sight of land and sextant angles
require fixed landmarks. In the days before GPS the Coast Guard used LORAN
or radar ranges to position these offshore markers. GPS is more accurate
than these older navigational tools and has increased the accuracy of
placement for offshore buoys. Though the missions of the 180s became more
mundane after World War II, they were not without the possibility of
excitement and danger. The US Coast Guard had designed the 180s as
functional SAR platforms and that capability, proven by rescues during the
war, allowed them to respond to emergency calls throughout US waters. As the
buoy tenders went about their ATON work, they were always on standby for
dispatch to the aid of nearby mariners in distress. Dovetailing nicely with
other SAR features was their ability to break ice on frozen waterways. This
meant they could not only clear shipping lanes for routine commerce, but
also go to the aid of other vessels trapped in the ice. Hence, they could
carry out rescues that were impossible for most cutters and patrol boats.
Beyond their seaworthiness and icebreaking capabilities, the buoy tender's
SAR value was augmented by equipment for towing other vessels and the
ability to fight fires on ships or along the shore.
NEW ROLE FOR THE 180S
By the late 1940s all the
temporarily decommissioned buoy tenders had returned to service as manpower
levels stabilized. All thirty-nine members of the type were engaged in ATON,
SAR, and, depending on their location, icebreaking duties. Their combined
operations covered the entire shoreline of the continental
United States
, the waters around
Hawaii
and
Alaska
, and large portions of the
Pacific Ocean
. During the postwar years the 180s were also increasingly involved in law
enforcement activities. These efforts centered on two disparate pursuits.
The buoy tenders helped enforce various federal fishing laws and
regulations, with particular focus on fishing in the Bering Sea and
Gulf of Alaska
. The efforts emphasized keeping foreign fishing vessels out of
U.S.
waters and enforcement of international agreements on the high seas. Tenders
stationed farther south along the
California
coast and those in the
Southeastern United States
were concerned with drug smuggling more than illegal fishing. As the flow of
illicit drugs entering the
U.S.
increased, many cutters, 180s included, went out to sea to meet vessels
headed for American ports, not to provide aid or check their fishing catch
but to search them for cargoes of contraband. The efforts to interdict drug
smugglers increased throughout the latter half of the century as the volume
of smuggling increased. In the 1980s and 1990s preventing undocumented
immigrants from entering the
US
by sea was added to the list of maritime law enforcement activities pursued
by the 180s.
CONTINUING MILITARY SERVICE
The 180s saw limited duty in the
Korean War and significant action in
Vietnam
. Five of the buoy tenders served in the waters around
South Vietnam
. None took up permanent station in the theater; instead, they rotated
through short tours from homeports in the
Philippines
and elsewhere in the Pacific. The vessels spent most of their time placing
and maintaining ATON marking coastal and inland waterways. Simultaneously,
they conducted extensive training of Vietnamese nationals in preparation for
the day when the ATON system passed into Vietnamese hands. This transfer was
completed in 1972. Other missions carried out by the 180s serving in the war
zone included cargo transport, survey work, and support of efforts to
interdict enemy supply lines. Most
of the 180s did not see wartime action after their service in World War II.
This does not mean, however, that military training was not part of the buoy
tender's overall mission. The potential military role of the Coast Guard,
however, means USCG units participate in periodic military exercises and
operations with the US Navy and allied maritime forces. As part of the US
Coast Guard, the buoy tenders regularly drilled to improve their ability to
find enemy forces, engage potential targets, survive battle damage, and work
in concert with naval units. These maritime defense activities have been
ongoing throughout the class' history and continue today.
THE FLEET SHRINKS
By the early 1970s the 180s had
reached their thirtieth anniversaries as Coast Guard cutters. It was during
this decade that the buoy tender inventory began to shrink. Appropriately
enough, the first to go was Cactus, the first built. Cactus ran
hard aground in 1971 and the damage was so extensive that the government
decided to decommission the vessel rather than repair her. The USCG
decommissioned the first of the 180s two days shy of the thirtieth
anniversary of her launch. Two more 180s left active duty, albeit less traumatically
and according to longstanding plans, the following year. A fourth vessel
left service in 1973 and two more followed in 1975. These vessels, even Cactus,
went on to second careers in the hands of foreign governments or private
owners.
Only one buoy tender was
decommissioned by design in the 1980s; Sagebrush left active duty in
April 1988, more than forty-four years after her commissioning. It was,
however, a hard decade on the 180 fleet. On 28 January 1980, Blackthorn collided
with a commercial tanker in
Tampa Bay
,
Florida
. The collision holed and capsized the buoy tender and it sank quickly,
killing twenty-three members of the crew. In December 1989
Mesquite
grounded on a rock pinnacle jutting
from the bottom of
Lake Superior
. The crew safely abandoned ship in lifeboats, but the vessel suffered
severe damage after pounding against the rocks during winter storms. USCG
planners decided to decommission
Mesquite
soon after the accident and a commercial salvage company scuttled her in
1990. Three of the buoy tenders became Medium Endurance cutters (WMEC)
during the 1980s. These conversions entailed the removal of the buoy
handling gear and reassignment to predominately LE and SAR patrol duties.
The
US Coast Guard decommissioned fourteen buoy tenders in the 1990s and seven
more in the early years of the next decade. In early 2002, eight of the
thirty-nine 180s remained in service as USCG buoy tenders. One other 180
remained in commission as a cutter, but operated in the role of a training
and support vessel. Few of the decommissioned cutters have actually been
destroyed or dismantled. Instead, they can be found throughout the world. A
number were transferred overseas under the Foreign Military Sales Program
and serve the navies of countries friendly to the
United States
. Two have embarked on careers as fishing vessels. One serves as a mobile base
and supply ship for a missionary group working in the Pacific. Even Cactus,
first of the 180s, first wrecked, and first decommissioned, still
exists. The remains of the tender built in 1941 serve as a barge in the
Pacific Northwest
. The 180s that have passed out of use entirely were sunk as reefs or ended
their lives as targets for naval munitions tests.
MAINTENANCE,
REPAIR, AND OVERHAUL
The
180-footer design, drawn up before World War II and built in the early
1940s, has demonstrated remarkable longevity. The US Coast Guard
decommissioned the bulk of the class only within the last decade and nine
vessels continue to serve on active duty, sixty years after they were built
and well past the projected life span of any military vessel. This is not to
say that the 180s simply steamed out of the shipyard after their completion
and were so well built that they lasted for five or six decades. To
keep these buoy tenders on active duty the US Coast Guard has expended
millions of dollars. The efforts that kept the 180s operating into the
twenty-first century began in the early 1940s. Even as they went about their
duties in the midst of war, maintenance remained a regular part of every
tender's routine. Maintenance carried out by the tender crews as part of the
everyday routine was interspersed with “availability” periods. During
these periods, scheduled at the request of the tender's captain or by orders
sent down the chain of command, the individual tenders temporarily left
service while the regular crew, often augmented by ship repair specialists,
addressed maintenance issues too complex to handle while the vessel pursued
its regular mission. The availability periods took many forms. In the
simplest incarnation, the tender would anchor out of the way or tie up
alongside a dock after a long voyage or operation and the whole crew would
devote a few days to putting everything in order. In instances where the
vessels required extensive work, the tenders visited shipyards in the
US
or at naval bases overseas. A visit to a shipyard
entailed any number of repairs including time in a drydock for work on the
hull and exterior propulsion equipment. After the war the 180s were
placed on a cyclical maintenance schedule. Exact timetables varied from ship
to ship and according to the service's needs, but on average, each cutter
visited a shipyard for a yard period or “availability” on a biannual
basis. Time in the yard allowed for the undertaking of major repairs and
improvements as well as routine maintenance chores like painting the hull.
Some of these yard periods took place at the US Coast Guard's yard in
Curtis
Bay
, but most occurred at commercial shipyards near the individual tender's homeport.
Buoy tenders were, of course, sent to the nearest yard equipped to handle
the problem after groundings or other mishaps. In a few instances the
Curtis
Bay
yard carried out special work to prepare vessels for unique projects. This
was the case when Spar and Bramble were readied for a trip
through the
Northwest Passage
and Evergreen underwent conversion to become an oceanographic
research vessel. Cyclical yard periods and the efforts of personnel
stationed on the buoy tenders kept them in proper shape for many years.
Nevertheless, by the 1970s the vessels had reached the end of their
projected thirty-year life spans and many were in need of substantial
overhauls if their service careers were to continue. The first round of
overhauls to affect the 180 fleet, known as “Austere Renovations”, began
in 1974. Improvements carried out as part of the Austere Renovation program
consisted of habitability improvements, engineering improvements, and
equipment upgrades. The habitability improvements included modernization of
the World War II-era crew quarters and sanitary facilities, installation of
a crew lounge, remodeling of the dispensary area, and improved climate
control systems. Work in the engineering spaces centered on the overhaul of
the propulsion systems and a general modernization of the engineering plant.
Equipment upgrades elsewhere included installation of modern electronics and
replacement of aging deck machinery. Four buoy tenders went through the
Austere Renovation program. At about the same time the Austere renovations
commenced, the US Coast Guard began rotating other 180s through shipyards
for more extensive improvements as part of the 'Major Renovation' (MAJREN)
program. Under the MAJREN program, vessels received new diesel engines while
the main electrical motor and its control systems underwent a thorough
overhaul. New electrical wiring and switchboards were installed, as were
entirely new water piping and sewage handling systems. Each vessel received
a bow thruster to improve its maneuverability in close quarters. Future
crews benefited from the replacement and modernization of all furnishings in
the living areas. Decreasing the size of the forward hold allowed the
expansion of the living area itself. Fourteen 180s went through the MAJREN
program. These repairs and improvements extended each vessels service life
by an estimated ten to fifteen years. The
third renovation program to affect members of the 180 classes was the
Service Life Extension Program (SLEP). This program began in 1983 and
culminated a decade later. These renovations all took place at
Curtis
Bay
and involved vessels that previously went through the MAJREN program.
Whereas, Austere and MAJREN had entailed significant overhaul, the SLEP was
the most extensive effort to extend the class' life span. During the yard
periods new main engines and generators replaced the aging power plants.
Upgrades and replacement components served to modernize the electrical
systems. Shipyard technicians installed new navigational systems and
computer controls for the engineering systems. SLEP work was far more than
the replacement or upgrade of various systems or simply the addition of new equipment;
it also entailed significant structural changes. Workers sandblasted each
vessel throughout to remove all paint and expose the underlying steel for
careful inspection. Shipyard workers tore away the existing deckhouse and
replaced it with a new structure that included an expanded pilothouse,
ship's office, and radio room. Internal changes included the installation of
smaller forward tanks and the conversion of the forward cargo hold to make
room for the installation of more berthing space, including bunks and heads
for female sailors and a crew lounge. The reconfigured space also included
boatswain, electrical, damage control, and electronics workshops. Work was
done in the internal spaces to improve the watertight integrity of the
vessel. Up on deck, a hydraulic system replaced the electric weight handling
gear and the boom operator's booth was relocated. For Cactus class
vessels SLEP included removal of the A-frame and reconfiguring the cargo
handling system so the boom attached to the bridge wings. Hydraulic weight
handling systems were also added to the boat davits on either side of the
superstructure. The SLEP overhauls were extensive and they were also time
consuming and costly. The average cost for a single tender to pass through
the SLEP was $11 million. Time spent in the yard averaged eighteen months
or, according to the analysis of two representative overhauls,
210,000-215,000 man-hours by shipyard workers. Like the earlier programs,
the SLEP helped to extend the service life span of the aging buoy tenders.
Coast Guard projections during the period estimated the SLEP would extend vessel
life spans by fifteen to twenty years. Three SLEP vessels remain in service
as of 2002. All other 180s that went through the SLEP program left service
beginning in 1999.
THE REPLACEMENTS
Renovating and improving the 180s
bought time, but it did not ameliorate a basic problem facing the service.
The US Coast Guard would eventually need to replace the 180s. While a steel
vessel can be kept functioning almost in perpetuity, the cost of doing so
eventually reaches a point where replacement is the preferred option. The
savings can be measured in monetary terms as well as improved efficiency
resulting from fewer breakdowns, less frequent yard periods, and the use of
more advanced technologies. By the 1990s it was time to begin the
lengthy process of creating a successor for the vessels one authority
called, ". . . quite possibly the most versatile and useful cutter ever
built for the Coast Guard," and, ". . . clearly the most
multi-mission capable ship in the Black Fleet." An initial planning and
consultation period ended in January 1993 when the USCG awarded a contract
to Marinette Shipbuilding for the production of a new class of seagoing buoy
tenders. Marinette Shipbuilding won a second contract in June 1993 for the
construction of a new class of coastal buoy tender. The new seagoing tender
class took the name of the prototype vessel: Juniper. The coastal
tenders became the Keeper class, each named for a well-known
lighthouse keeper from the past. The Juniper class vessels measure
225 feet in length, 46 feet in beam, and are propelled by two diesel engines
driving a single reduction gear and a Controllable Pitch Propeller (CPP).
Marinette builds them with both a bow and stern thruster, which combined
with the CPP makes for a maneuverable platform. Like the 180s, they can
handle limited icebreaking duties. The new seagoing tender incorporates many
advances in maritime technology that allow the tenders, though larger than
their predecessors, to operate effectively with a smaller crew.
Perhaps the most significant
advance is the use of a dynamic positioning system (DPS) to help keep the
tender on station. The DPS involves computerization of the systems that
maneuver the vessel, namely propulsion and steering, combined with the
latest in satellite navigation technology. This system allows the Juniper
class vessels to maintain position within a 10-meter radius in 30-knot
winds and 8' seas. Juniper passed from Marinette Shipbuilding to the
USCG in 1996. Projections call for a total of sixteen Juniper class
tenders. Keeper class
tenders measure 175 feet in length and have a beam of 36 feet. They are the
first USCG cutters propelled by a twin Z-Drive. This propulsion system is
essentially a propeller installed within a nozzle that can rotate 360
degrees. This means thrust, in any amount manageable by the vessel's diesel
engine, can be applied in any direction. The Z-Drive system, popular with
many newer tugboats, combined with a bow thruster ensures the Keeper class
tenders have excellent maneuverability and station-keeping qualities. Each
vessel also carries dynamic positioning systems, honing the vessel's ability
to hover on station even further. As of 2002 the USCG has fourteen Keeper
class tenders in service. As the new seagoing and coastal tenders have
entered service, the US Coast Guard has decommissioned the older 180s. At
the beginning of 2002 there
were nine of the old buoy tenders still in commission. They will phase out
slowly and tentative plans call for Acacia to
be the last in service with a decommissioning date sometime in 2006.
A
GREAT DESIGN
The 180-foot buoy-tending cutters
built for the US Coast Guard during the early 1940s are remarkable in terms
of their longevity. Except the US Coast Guard's Storis, no other
military vessels on active duty today served in World War II. The 180s
longevity is not a case of superior construction, though they were
undoubtedly built quite solidly.
The service performed by the class for over sixty years is a function of
their design. The 180s were extremely versatile and perfectly suited for
their multifaceted role. They could break ice, replace a buoy, and save a
sinking ship all in the course of a day's work. Moreover, they could
complete these missions within sight of their homeport or steam across
thousands of miles of ocean to complete an assigned task. They did not
become outmoded until computers, satellites, and automation changed the way
ships are built and equipped. The US Coast Guard spent time and money
keeping the 180s in service long beyond their projected life span because
that remained the best option. These ships that fought U-boats in World War
II have spent millions of hours since making the world's waterways a safer
place for science, commerce, and recreation. This was possible due to the
design’s versatility and reliability. Obsolescence crept up on the 180s
very slowly, producing a tenure unmatched in twentieth-century American
maritime history. The 180-foot buoy tenders proved to be extremely versatile
vessels during their long careers. Though all spent some portion of their
time afloat servicing buoys, they served in many other pursuits as well.
Many of these alternate activities revolved around the vessel's intended
secondary missions, search and rescue, law enforcement, and icebreaking.
Often, however, the tenders carried out missions never envisioned by
their designers, ranging from transporting rare tropical fish to landing
scientific parties on drifting icebergs. This plethora of pursuits when
combined with the wide geographic distribution of the 180s makes it
difficult to describe a typical or generic career for a 180. The oceangoing
buoy tenders built for the US Coast Guard in the early 1940s served around
the world and fulfilled the service's requirement for a true multi-mission
capable platform.
Cutter History:
World War II
After commissioning USCGC Spar was assigned to the First Coast Guard District and
homeported at Boston, MA. The cutter was used for general ATON duties.
Spar
also participated in convoy duty in support of anti-submarine warfare off the coast of Brazil.
At the war's end Spar was still assigned to Boston as a permanent station.
Spar’s permanent station changed to Woods
Hole, MA in December 1946, where it remained until June 1951, when its
homeport moved to Bristol, RI.
In 1957, Spar conducted hydrographic operations through the Northwest Passage in company
with CGCs Storis and Bramble. This historic mission marked the first time any vessel had circumnavigated the
North American continent. For this significant accomplishment President
Dwight D. Eisenhower sent his personal congratulations. In 1966 Spar
was assigned the mission of performing an undersea oceanographic charting
expedition in the northern Atlantic. During this trip the cutter visited Newfoundland, Iceland, Norway, Denmark, Germany and Northern Ireland, logging over 17,000 miles.
The cutter's homeport changed again in April 1967, to Boston, where it and CGC
Cactus traded captains and crew. In March 1973,
Spar was stationed at South Portland, ME. Since its arrival here,
the
Spar's primary duties have been the maintenance of approximately 200 aids to navigation off the coasts of Maine and New Hampshire, logistical support of lighthouses, search and rescue, and enforcement of
laws and treaties.
Spar had the distinction of
having set the record at Refresher Training in Little Creek, VA in 1981, for
the highest marks ever achieved by an ocean-going buoy tender. In subsequent
years the cutter returned from Little Creek with outstanding marks, and proudly displayed a gold "E" with three gold service stripes for
eight consecutive overall excellent scores in operations and seamanship
training. Spar was recognized by VADM Paul Welling, LANTAREA commander,
as "The cutter with the most gold" in the Atlantic fleet.
Spar's operational area for servicing navigational aids ran from Portsmouth, NH
to West Quoddy Head on the northeastern tip of Maine, a distance of some 227
miles. Much of the year was dedicated to servicing approximately 200
floating aids and providing logistical support to several lighthouses. Some
winters the ship was also tasked with breaking ice in Cape Cod Canal and
Buzzards Bay in Massachusetts.
The cutter returned to Little Creek for Refresher Training every 24 to 30
months, and a scheduled maintenance period at a shipyard was conducted triennially.
Spar was one of the Coast Guard's busiest buoy tenders. It was normally in a
24-hour recall status, though it is sometimes put on a 2-hour response time
for heavy-weather search and rescue cases during the winter months.
Spar serviced navigational aids along some of the most scenic coastlines in the
country. The ship worked among hundreds of mostly unsettled islands along the Maine coast. Casco Bay, Penobscot Bay and Frenchman's Bay, home of Acadia National Park, are world-renowned for their natural beauty.
The treacherous shoals,
ledges, currents and weather found in this region made for challenging
piloting. The primary port calls for Spar and
its crew were commonly Rockland and Southwest Harbor, ME. Port calls also included Bar Harbor; Portsmouth, NH; Woods Hole, MA; and Newport, RI.
Commanding Officers
Sources:
Cutter File, Coast Guard Historian's Office.
HABS/HAER, National Park Service, US Department of the
Interior. US Coast Guard 180-Foot Buoy Tenders. Washington, DC:
Government Printing Office, 2003.
Robert Scheina. Coast Guard Cutters &
Craft of World War II. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1981.
Robert Scheina. Coast Guard Cutters &
Craft, 1946-1990. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1990.
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