The Coast Guard commissioned its newest Sentinel-class fast response cutter (FRC), USCGC Frederick Mann (WPC 1160), during a ceremony in Kodiak, Alaska, on Friday.
The ceremony was presided over by Rear Adm. Bob Little, commander of the Arctic District. Members of the Mann family attended, including the cutter's sponsor, Eugenia "Jeannie" Mann Hyder, niece of Frederick Mann.
"Commissioning the Frederick Mann increases U.S. strength and ensures control of our maritime borders and approaches," Little said. "This crew will honor their motto – courage through fire—as they serve in the U.S. Arctic and Alaska."
Built by Bollinger Shipyards, Lockport, La., the 154' Mann is the Coast Guard's 60th FRC and the third to be homeported at Coast Guard Base Kodiak. The crew will primarily serve in and around the Aleutian Islands, Bering Sea, Gulf of Alaska, and North Pacific Ocean. The cutter is designed for missions including search and rescue, fishery patrols, drug and migrant interdiction, national defense, and ports, waterways, and coastal security.
The vessel is named after Chief Warrant Officer Frederick Mann, who was born in Atlee, Va., on Oct. 14, 1918, and enlisted in the Coast Guard in 1939.
During World War II, Mann's ship, USS George F. Elliott, participated in the initial landings of Guadalcanal on Aug. 7, 1942. The following day, Japanese bombers attacked the landing fleet and a bomber aircraft crashed into his ship, spilling fuel across the decks and setting the ship on fire.
Mann carried a fire hose into the burning ammunition compartment and pumped water into the space. Despite a lack of oxygen, suffocating smoke, and super-heated bulkheads, Mann re-entered the compartment to ensure the hose was dousing the fire and filling the compartment properly. His actions prevented the space from detonating and causing more casualties aboard the Elliott.
The vessel continued to burn overnight without the ammunition detonating, and everyone was able to safely evacuate. For his actions, Mann was awarded the Gold Life Saving Medal and also received the Silver Star medal and the Presidential Unit Citation.
Mann later served 31 years at various units including captain-of-the-port stations and lifeboat stations on the Great Lakes, East Coast, and Gulf Coast. He also served aboard the cutters Bibb and General Greene, buoy tenders Myrtle, Oak, White Pine, and Narcissus, which he commanded. Mann passed away at age 98 on Jan. 9, 2017.
The Coast Guard has ordered new FRCs to replace the 1980s-era Island-class 110' patrol boats. Supported by investments made possible through President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the legislation provides nearly $25 billion—the largest single funding commitment in Coast Guard history—including $1 billion for additional FRCs.
FRCs are built based on the Stan 4708 patrol vessel design from the Netherlands-based Damen Shipyards Group. Main propulsion comes from twin MTU 20V4000 M93L diesel engines, each producing 2,900 hp and giving each boat a flank speed of 28 knots.
The ships feature advanced command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance equipment, and over-the-horizon cutter boat deployment. The Arctic District is scheduled to acquire two new offshore patrol cutters in the near future.
