Bollinger Shipyards has delivered the 154'x25'5"x9'6" John McCormick to the Coast Guard, the 21st fast response cutter (FRC) from the Lockport, La., shipyard. The patrol boat is made of steel with an aluminum superstructure and is ABS classed High-Speed Naval Craft. The Sentinel-class FRC was one of WorkBoat’s Significant Boats of the Year in 2013.
The John McCormick is the first FRC to be stationed at Ketchikan, Alaska.
For the FRC, Bollinger is using a proven, in-service parent craft design based on the Damen Stan Patrol Boat 4708. Main propulsion comes from twin MTU 20V4000 M93L diesel engines, producing 2,900 hp each. The patrol boat has a flank speed of 28 knots, state of the art command, control, communications and computer technology, and a stern launch system for the vessel’s 26' cutter boat.
“We are excited to announce the delivery of the latest FRC to the U.S. Coast Guard, the USCGC John McCormick. This FRC built by Bollinger Shipyards will be stationed in the 17th Coast Guard District in Ketchikan, Alaska, and will assist in defending our nation’s interests in the Alaskan maritime region,” Ben Bordelon, Bollinger’s president and CEO said in a statement announcing the delivery. “We are very proud that the FRCs already in commission have seized multiple tons of narcotics, interdicted thousands of illegal aliens and saved many lives. We are also very proud of the fact that our FRC program has surpassed all historical quality benchmarks resulting in truly exceptional vessels that will serve our nation for many years to come.”
The Coast Guard took delivery on Dec. 13, 2016, in Key West, Fla., and is scheduled to commission the vessel in Ketchikan, Alaska, in April, 2017.
The new cutters have a minimum endurance of five days at sea and a range of 2,950 nautical miles. The FRCs must be capable of underway operations for a minimum of 2,500 hours annually, using the latest technologically advanced command, control, communications and computer technology that are interoperable with other Coast Guard assets.
Each FRC carries a crew of 24 (three officers, 21 enlisted) and is equipped with a stabilized, remotely operated 25mm chain gun and four .50-caliber machine guns.
The FRCs are named for an enlisted Coast Guard hero who distinguished him or herself in the line of duty. This vessel is named after Coast Guard Hero John McCormick, who was awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal on Nov. 7, 1938, for his heroic action in affecting the rescue of Surfman Richard O. Bracken in treacherous conditions in the outer breaks on Clatsop Spit, near the mouth of the Columbia River.
