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Coast Guard Assets

Explore the aircraft, cutters and boats used by the Coast Guard to conduct various missions throughout the world.

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The Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star, with 75,000 horsepower and its 13,500-ton weight, is guided by its crew to break through Antarctic ice en route to the National Science Foundation's McMurdo Station, Jan. 15, 2017. The ship, which was designed more than 40 years ago, remains the world's most powerful non-nuclear icebreaker.

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The Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star en route to the National Science Foundation's McMurdo Station

The Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star, with 75,000 horsepower and its 13,500-ton weight, is guided by its crew to break through Antarctic ice en route to the National Science Foundation's McMurdo Station, Jan. 15, 2017. The ship, which was designed more than 40 years ago, remains the world's most powerful non-nuclear icebreaker. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Chief Petty Officer David Mosley)

Characteristics

Length: 399 feet
Beam: 83.5 feet
Sustained Speed: 18 knots
Range: 16,000 nautical miles at 18 knots; 28,275 at 13 knots
Ice breaking 6 feet thick at 3 knots

Summary
The 399-foot Polar class icebreakers were designed for open-water ice breaking to serve in the Arctic and Antarctic, supporting science and research as well as providing resupply to remote stations. Their capabilities also enable them to perform search and rescue, ship escort, environmental protection and enforcement of laws and treaties in places most ships cannot reach.

Description

The 399-foot Polar class icebreakers were built in the 1970s and have reinforced hulls, special ice breaking bows and a system that allows rapid shifting of ballast to increase the effectiveness of their ice breaking. They are fully equipped for helicopter berthing and deck operations and can carry two H-60 Jayhawks or H-65 Dolphins.

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