USS Hurricane (PC-3)

USS ''Hurricane'' (PC-3) is the third of the of United States Navy coastal patrol ships, named for various weather phenomena.

History

Construction

''Hurricane'' was laid down on 20 November 1991, at Lockport, Louisiana, by Bollinger Machine Shop and Shipyard; launched on 6 June 1992; sponsored by Elizabeth W. Cantrell; and commissioned on 15 October 1993, at Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, California, Lieutenant John P. Gelinne in command.

Service

Following the Haitian Army’s overthrow of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in September 1991, a succession of governments led to sectarian violence, and in May 1994, the military installed Supreme Court Justice Emile Jonassaint as Haiti’s provisional president. The United Nations authorized force to restore order and the U.S. initiated Operations Support Democracy and Uphold/Restore Democracy: Uphold Democracy for a peaceful entry into Haiti, and Restore Democracy in the event of resistance.

''Hurricane'' patrolled the Haitian coast during Operation Support Democracy as Haiti agreed to allow the U.S. to land peacefully, operating at times with Navy SEAL teams. On 6 July 1994, the amphibious assault ship sailed from Norfolk, Virginia, in response to the crisis. relieved ''Inchon'' in Haitian waters on 17 August. The crisis escalated the following month, however, prompting an enlarged response by a multinational force that included the aircraft carriers and . About 1,800 soldiers of the U.S. Army's XVIII Airborne Corps embarked on board ''Dwight D. Eisenhower''. The U.S. transferred peacekeeping functions to international forces on 31 March 1995.

''Hurricane'' and , together with Patrol Craft crews Juliet, Lima, Kilo, and Mike, shifted their home port from Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, California, to Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia, from 1 November–15 December 2005, a move made as part of a reorganization to better fight the Global War on Terrorism. The Navy intended to forward deploy five of the eight ''Cyclone''-class ships at Naval Support Activity Bahrain, and the remaining three at Little Creek.

"SEAL ea, Air, Landteams couldn’t use them because they were too large for their mission," Lt. Bart Denny, Regional Support Organization PC transit coordinator explained, "and we started to transfer the ships to the Coast Guard. After September 11, the demand for them grew. They can get to shallow waters and maneuver quickly where cruisers and destroyers can’t safely operate. This makes them a great asset for protecting oil terminals and overseas port security." Denny further noted the logistics issue: "Keeping the ships on station in Bahrain significantly cuts down on the wear and tear of the ship and reduces the amount of time it takes to get the ship fully operational on station."

In order to maintain the forward-deployed ships the Navy created 16 rotational crews, identified by alpha names, each crew consisting of four officers and 24 enlisted sailors. The move enabled crewmembers to learn together in a single location during seven- to 16-week training cycles.

"By moving the PCs here we’re going to standardize what we do," Lieutenant Commander Brian J. Diebold, ''Hurricane''s commanding officer, observed. "We’ll be able to train here, then fly to the 5th Fleet AOR (area of operations) and accomplish whatever mission is set before us."

The Navy subsequently reinforced the 5th Fleet and ''Hurricane'' and shifted to Bahrain, completing their move on 13 August 2014. Their deployment raised to ten the total number of patrol craft operating within the 5th Fleet.

References

Bibliography

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External links

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PC-1 Cyclone class Patrol Coastal Boats
''Federation of American Scientists (FAS) Military Analysis Network''.


"Fact File".

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hurricane (PC-3)
Cyclone-class patrol ships
Ships built in Lockport, Louisiana
1992 ships