Island Class Patrol Boat

Manufacturer: Bollinger

Service: US Coast Guard

Propulsion: A and B series - 2x Paxman Valenta 16RP 200M diesel engines; C series - 2x Caterpillar 3516 DITA diesels

Speed: 29 kts

Range: 3,900 miles

Armament: Mk-38 25mm bushmaster cannon, 2x M2 .50 caliber machine guns

Crew: Two officers, 14 enlisted

The 110-foot Island-class Patrol Boats are a Coast Guard modification of a highly successful British-designed patrol boat. With excellent range and seakeeping capabilities, the Island Class, all named after U.S. islands, replaced the older 95-foot Cape-class patrol boats. These cutters are equipped with advanced electronics and navigation equipment.

In 1984 the Coast Guard initiated a program to replace aging 82' Point-class and 95' Cape-class patrol boats currently in service. The original contract for 16 patrol boats was awarded to the Marine Power and Equipment Company of Seattle, WA. but was later voided by a US. District Court because of procurement irregularities. Subsequently, the contract was awarded to the Bollinger Shipyards in Lockport, La., in August, 1984.

To speed production and ensure the Coast Guard received a boat of proven design, the design chosen was a modified version of a British boat built by Vosper Thornycroft, U.K., that had been in service with Venezuela, Qatar, Singapore and the UAE for more than 20 years.

The first of the class, Farallon (WPB-1301) was commissioned in February of 1986 and was assigned patrol duties in Miami, Fla. In 1986 the Navy purchased an additional 16 Island-class patrol boats for the Coast Guard under a DoD Augmentation Appropriation, while 5 more were purchased by the Coast Guard with 1986 Anti-drug Abuse Act funds. Including a final order for twelve additional boats, there would ultimately be a total of 49 Island-class patrol boats in service.

As offshore patrol boats, the Island-class boats are expected to perform surveillance, law enforcement, and drug interdiction operations as well as search and rescue work. They have a 5-day endurance and a three-ton payload capacity.

Of the original 49 boats in the Island-class, 41 are still in service with 8 having been upgraded to the 123' Island-class standard as part of the Coast Guard's $17 billion Deepwater project.