Contract Adrift: Coast Guard Cutter Program Treading Water.

• Author: Easley, Mikayla
• Position: COAST GUARD

The Coast Guard is in the process of replacing its fleet of aging ships through several shipbuilding programs. But the service's top priority--a cutter that will eventually provide a majority of the Coast Guard's offshore presence--is currently adrift as the contract is in dispute.

The Offshore Patrol Cutter is intended to bridge the capability gap the Coast Guard sees between its National Security Cutter--which patrols the open ocean--and the Fast Response Cutter--which operates closer to shore. Along with replacing its small fleet of icebreakers, the cutter is considered one of the most highly anticipated shipbuilding programs under development by the Coast Guard.

The Coast Guard is looking to acquire 25 ships over two decades for a total price tag of more than $12 billion, making the Offshore Patrol Cutter its highest investment priority and largest acquisition program, according to a 2020 Government Accountability Office report titled, "Coast Guard Acquisitions: Opportunities Exist to Reduce Risk for the Offshore Patrol Cutter Program."

However, the program has been in a state of uncertainty since Eastern Shipbuilding Group--the builder of the first Offshore Patrol Cutters--filed a protest with the watchdog organization over the service's decision to award second-stage contract to Austal USA.

The Coast Guard initially chose Eastern Shipbuilding Group of Panama City, Florida, to build the first Offshore Patrol Cutters based on the company's 2016 design. At the time, the award covered the production of up to nine vessels with a potential value of up to $2.4 billion, the GAO report said.

The ships will be used in a variety of missions, including both homeland security and defense operations.

As they are intended to replace the Coast Guard's aging 270-foot and 210-foot medium endurance cutters, the Offshore Patrol Cutters are crucial for the service's modernization efforts, said Joey D'Isernia, president of Eastern Shipbuilding Group.

"As far as comparison [to the medium endurance cutters], there hardly is one just because these Offshore Patrol Cutters are so much more mission capable than their predecessors--just top to bottom. It's really a game changer," he said.

Eastern's design featured a 360-foot hull that can carry an MH-60R Seahawk or MH-65 Dolphin helicopter, small unmanned aerial vehicles and three over-the-horizon small inflatable boats. In addition, the vessel is outfitted with an advanced armament system and new command...