The Coast Guard is pursuing a range of new innovations to increase its effectiveness—including through the purchase of new Arctic icebreakers and the development of a drone program.
Although the United States Coast Guard remains a branch of the US military, it operates under the Department of Homeland Security—meaning that its efforts to protect the United States are typically limited to patrolling the waterways near the nation’s shores.
This week, the US Coast Guard announced that it has awarded a contract, valued at a potential $137 million for Phase 1A activities, to the Whiting-Turner Contracting Company, which will modernize the Polar Security Cutters (PSC) at Base Seattle, Washington. The first phase of the contract will include dredging work and the “construction of two modernized major cutter berths” that will support the service’s operations in the Arctic and Antarctic regions.
America Needs More Icebreakers for the Arctic
The Coast Guard will award further contracts for Phases 1B and 1C, which will enable four major cutter berths to be based in Seattle.
“This work at Base Seattle is critical to supporting future operations to establish U.S. maritime dominance, conduct Coast Guard missions in the high latitudes and advance national security interests, including in the Arctic and Antarctic regions,” the Coast Guard announced. “The recently enacted One Big Beautiful Bill Act makes a historic investment in the Coast Guard’s polar icebreaking fleet by providing $4.3 billion to continue construction of the PSC fleet.”
The Pentagon has been warning since 2022 that the US desperately needed more icebreaker ships, especially as a new “Cold War” could be heating up in the Arctic region. Just last month, the US Coast Guard added its first polar icebreaker to the fleet in 25 years.
The former oilfield supply ship and icebreaking offshore tug Aiviq was re-commissioned in Juneau, Alaska, as the USCGC Storis (WAGB-21). That vessel is a stopgap, however, while the USCG waits for the delivery of its new Polar Security Cutter class. The Trump administration has also approved a budget measure that will allocate $300 million towards improving Coast Guard facilities in Juneau.
The Coast Guard Is Also Building Up a Drone Program
Even as the USCG may need to wait a while for its icebreaker fleet, it has also expanded the use of drones. As part of its ongoing Force Design 2028 modernization, the Coast Guard created a new program executive officer who will aid in its adoption of the uncrewed systems (UxS).
“The Robotics and Autonomous Systems Program Executive Office (RAS PEO) will focus on integrating this rapidly evolving technology—which includes unmanned aircraft (commonly referred to as drones), surface, subsurface, and space systems—across all 11 of its statutory missions,” the USCG explained last month.
The new head of the office, Commander Sam Hill, stated that the use of drones could lead to the most significant expansion of the Coast Guard’s capabilities since the advent of aviation nearly a century ago.
“That’s not hyperbole,” said Hill. “This is one of those universally applicable technological advances that will allow us to execute operations better, faster, more safely, and for a fraction of the current cost. Robotics will change how we conduct every mission in the Coast Guard.”
The MQ-9B Guardian is a variant of the US military’s MQ-9 Reaper hunter-killer drone. The Coast Guard version will be employed in drug interdiction missions, but also to aid in countering human trafficking and search-and-rescue operations.
Whereas the Coast Guard’s fixed-wing aircraft, including the C-130 Super Hercules, can engage in patrol missions for only around 14 hours, the MQ-9B Guardians can stay in the air for 24 hours at a time and cover as much territory.
The Guard Is Emphasizing Physical Fitness
The USCG has also undertaken a review of the fitness of its personnel. The old Physical Fitness Assessment (PFA) is being phased out in favor of the Physical Fitness Test (PFT), which will employ new standards.
“Readiness starts with the physical and mental readiness of every Coast Guard man and woman,” Admiral Kevin Lunday, the acting-commandant, and MCPOCG Phil Waldron explained in an email to the workforce this month. “On that cornerstone we build the readiness of the crew, the unit, and the force.”
The USCG will offer assistance to service members to help them “crush the PFT” when the time comes, with trainers and even one-on-one health and wellness coaching.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a 30-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a contributing writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
