USCGC Forward

USCGC *Forward*
	USCGC Forward (WMEC-911) in 1992.
History
United States
Name	USCGC Forward
Namesake	Walter Forward
Builder	Robert Derecktor Shipyard Incorporated, Rhode Island, U.S.
Acquired	4 August 1990
Commissioned	1990
Homeport	Portsmouth, Virginia
Identification	MMSI number: 367261000; Callsign: NICB;
Motto	Ever the Sentinel
Status	In active service
Badge
General characteristics
Class & type	Famous-class cutter
Displacement	1,800 long tons (1,829 t)
Length	270 ft (82 m)
Beam	38 ft (12 m)
Draft	14.5 ft (4.4 m)
Propulsion	Twin turbo-charged ALCO V-18 diesel engines
Speed	19.5 knots (36.1 km/h; 22.4 mph)
Range	9,900 miles
Boats & landing; craft carried	1 × Over-the-Horizon (OTH) Interceptor; 1 × RHI with twin 90 HP outboard engines;
Complement	100 personnel (14 officers, 86 enlisted)
Sensors &; processing systems	MK 92 Fire Control Radar; SPS-73 Surface Search Radar;
Electronic warfare; & decoys	AN/SLQ-32
Armament	1 OTO Melara Mk 75 76 mm/62 caliber naval gun; 2 × .50 caliber (12.7 mm) machine gun;
Aircraft carried	HH-65 Dolphin; HH-60 Jayhawk; MH-68 Stingray;

USCGC Forward (WMEC-911) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter. She is the fourth cutter of that name; two were United States Revenue Cutter Service vessels and two, including the contemporary cutter, Coast Guard vessels. All were named for Walter Forward, fifteenth United States Secretary of the Treasury.^[1] The present Forward was constructed by Robert Derecktor Shipyard Incorporated, Middletown, Rhode Island, was delivered in May 1989, and commissioned 4 August 1990. USCGC Forward (WMEC-911) and USCGC Legare (WMEC-912) were commissioned in a joint ceremony in Portsmouth, Virginia.^{[citation needed]}

History

2010s

On 12 January 2010, USCGC Forward was at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base when the 2010 Haiti earthquake occurred. She was ordered to assist in the humanitarian relief efforts, and was the first American vessel to arrive in Port-au-Prince the following morning.^[2]^[3]

USCGC Forward was set to wrap a deployment in the Caribbean and was ported in Guantanamo Bay in order to onload fuel, supplies, and debrief the USCGC Tahoma prior to returning to home port. The Tahoma was set to take over operations in the area and the Forward was set to return home. In lieu of returning home, the Forward and her crew set sail to Haiti to initialize the U.S. response to the massive efforts that would eventually take place in the following weeks.

Awards

Forward has been awarded the following unit and campaign awards:

^[4]

References

^ "USCGC FORWARD (WMEC 911)". United States Coast Guard Atlantic Area, U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Defense Media Activity. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
^ "Coast Guard Sends Cutters, Aircraft to Haiti". Navy Times. 2010-01-13. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
^ Eric Lipton (January 13, 2010). "Devastation, Seen From a Ship". New York Times. Retrieved 2010-01-14.
^ View of ribbon display posted on the ship's bridge and discussion with crew 22 July 2023.^{[not specific enough to verify]}