The Embassy of the United States of America in Kyiv reported that two Island Class Patrol Boats have departed Baltimore, Maryland for Odesa. The Island-class patrol boat is a class of cutters of the U.S. Coast Guard. 49 cutters of the class were built, of which 37 remain in commission. Part of the over $2.5 billion in security assistance Flag of United States has provided Flag of Ukraine since 2014, the vessels will help strengthen Flag of Ukraine’s maritime security of Ukraine Navy’s interoperability with NATO. Earlier in October, two boats from Ukraine would be carried out in the third quarter of 2021, and another one is scheduled to be delivered by the end of the year.
The 110 ft (34 m) Island-class patrol boats are a U.S. Coast Guard modification of a highly successful British-designed Vosper Thornycroft patrol boat built for Qatar, Abu Dhabi, and Singapore. With excellent range and seakeeping capabilities, the Island class, replaced the Cape-class cutters. These cutters are equipped with advanced electronics and navigation equipment and are used in support of the Coast Guard’s maritime homeland security, migrant interdiction, drug interdiction, defense operations, fisheries enforcement, and search and rescue missions.
As built, these vessels were all 110 feet (34 m) in length. It is powered by two Paxman Valenta 16 CM diesel engines or two Caterpillar 3516 diesel engines. It has two 99 kilowatts 3304T diesel generators made by Caterpillar; these can serve as motor–generators. Its hull is constructed from highly strong steel, and the superstructure and major deck are constructed from aluminum. In 2002 as part of the Integrated Deepwater System Program, the Coast Guard began refitting some of these vessels, adding 13 feet (4.0 m) to the stern to make room for a high-speed stern launching ramp, and replacing the superstructure so that these vessels had enough room to accommodate mixed-gender crews.
The 58 ordered Sentinel-class cutters, selected under the Fast Response Cutter (FRC) program, are slated to replace the Island class. Six Island class cutters are currently stationed in Manama, Bahrain as a part of Patrol Forces Southwest Asia to provide the Navy’s Fifth Fleet with combat ready assets. The cutters have 10 tons worth of space and weight reservations for additional weapons. The U.S. Coast Guard has transferred several ships to foreign navies and coast guards via the Defense Security Cooperation Agency’s Office of International Acquisition’s Excess Defense Articles Program (EDA).
