THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, November 15, 1995 TAG: 9511140129
SECTION: MILITARY NEWS PAGE: A6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JACK DORSEY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 87 lines
For the past 11 years the Portsmouth-based Coast Guard cutter Harriet Lane has been plying mainly the stormy Atlantic, purposely steaming into pounding waves and freezing winds to save a life.
It's not a pleasant task for this 20-knot ship that is more comfortable on glassy waters, or in the warmer Caribbean Seas.
But today the 270-foot medium endurance cutter is far from its home waters after seeking out such storms in the ``last frontier'' of the Bering Sea off Alaska's coast.
It found some too, said its executive officer, Lt. Cmdr. Bob Sheaves.
``The worst gave us 20- to 22-foot waves,'' he said last week by telephone. ``But we did just fine.''
Normally a job for the Coast Guard's beefier ships, such as its 378-foot high-endurance cutters, this is the first 270-foot cutter to patrol Alaskan waters. The Harriet Lane was tapped for the chore in August, along with the high-endurance cutter Boutwell, based in Alameda, Calif.
The Coast Guard wants to compare the operational capabilities of the two ships to determine whether operating the smaller cutters is feasible, provided they can handle the dangerous missions.
There's more than 950,000 square miles of water off the Alaskan coast that are continuously patrolled by the Coast Guard to enforce the 200-mile fisheries conservation zone.
In a state that spans the distance normally covered by four time zones - with a coastline larger than that of the East Coast - it is a demanding job for the 14 vessels assigned there.
Annually, the Coast Guard saves between 150 and 200 lives in those waters and prevents the loss of more than $5 million in maritime property, according to its annual reports.
The Coast Guard has six 180-foot buoy tenders, five 110-foot patrol boats, two medium-endurance cutters and one 65-foot buoy tender in Alaska. Several larger vessels from other western Coast Guard districts frequently augment the Alaskan fleet.
But using the 270-foot ``Famous-class'' of medium-endurance cutters such as the Harriet Lane in the northwest waters could prove both economically and feasibly sound.
``We proved we can handle the job,'' said Sheaves as the Harriet Lane made its way back to Portsmouth. It was in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, last week, preparing to sail to Panama and into the Caribbean this week.
Its commanding officer, Cmdr. Paul F. Zukunst, is planning to have the ship and its 100-member crew home in time for Thanksgiving.
While Coast Guard headquarters in Washington has made no decision on whether to permanently assign the Famous class of ships to the region, Sheaves said the exercise was successful for his ship.
``We followed storms around in the Juneau area,'' said Sheaves.
When the ship ran across a few, its crew would work side-by-side with the crew of the Boutwell to determine how well they handled waves and swells.
The bitter cold of winter had not yet hit the region while the Harriet Lane worked the waters.
But Sheaves, who has worked in the area before, said he's confident the ship can handle the weather and seas.
The trip was among the more interesting assignments the Harriet Lane has encountered, he said.
``This crew has now been farther north, south, east and west than any other of the 270-foot cutters,'' he said.
It participated earlier this year in a South American cruise with the Navy that circumnavigated that continent.
In all, the Harriet Lane has traveled 21,600 miles this year, and will probably end the year with nearly 25,000 miles, or the equivalent of a trip around the world at the equator. ILLUSTRATION: U.S. Coast Guard
The Harriet Lane and its 100-member crew headed to Alaskan waters in
the summer. It is expected to be home in time for Thanksgiving.
by CNB