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Coast Guard cutters "mission complete" in Arabian Gulf

USCG Press Release

May 14, 2003

ARABIAN GULF - Coast Guard cutters Boutwell, a 378-foot high endurance cutter homeported in Alameda, Calif., and Walnut, a 225-foot buoy tender homeported in Honolulu, began heading home today after completing their missions in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.

Both cutters conducted a wide range of missions while serving in the Gulf, including maritime force protection, coastal and terminal security, and maritime interception and marine environmental response. The cutters also assisted in the post-Saddam economic recovery of Iraq by securing vital oil infrastructure and improving the safety of the navigational approach to its only international seaport

"Without question, the skill and dedication of the crews of Walnut and Boutwell were instrumental to the overall success of our naval forces and underscored the importance of the Navy-Coast Guard team," said Vice Adm. Tim Keating, the commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command. "The can-do spirit demonstrated by the Coast Guard forces in Operation Iraqi Freedom has solidified their service's character as a maritime, multi-mission, military service and continued its proud history of service to the country in time of conflict."

The Coast Guard's role in Operation Iraqi Freedom represents its largest overseas deployment in support of military operations since the Vietnam War.

Cutter Boutwell departed Alameda on Jan. 3 and began operations in the Arabian Gulf on Feb. 14. At one point in the deployment, from Feb. 14 until April 25, the cutter spent 70 days at sea without a port call.

Prior to the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Boutwell's crew conducted maritime interception boardings to enforce U.N. sanctions against Iraq. At the outbreak of hostilities and throughout Operation Iraqi Freedom, they operated in the strategically critical and politically sensitive Khawr Abd Allah and Shaat Al Arab Waterways, providing force protection to the massive coalition fleet, securing the Iraqi oil terminals, and preventing the movement of weapons, personnel or equipment by Saddam Hussein's regime or other guerilla or terrorist forces.

The Walnut was originally deployed to the North Arabian Gulf with an oil spill recovery system in the event the regime of Saddam Hussein committed any acts of environmental terrorism. When those threats did not materialize the cutter conducted maritime interdiction operations enforcing U.N. Security Council resolutions, participated in the search for two downed United Kingdom helicopters, and patrolled and provided assistance to captured Iraqi offshore oil terminals being secured by Coast Guard port security personnel.

When the coalition's efforts shifted to humanitarian assistance and economic recovery, the Walnut was ideally suited to provide a valuable service through her aids to navigation capability. The cutter's crew completely replaced 30 buoys and repaired an additional five along the 41-mile Khawr Abd Allah Waterway. This 20-day mission vastly improved the navigational safety of the waterway for humanitarian aid, commercial, and military vessels sailing to the port and was a critical step to economic recovery for the people of Iraq.

Coast Guard Port Security Units from San Pedro, Calif., Port Clinton, Ohio, and Tacoma, Wash., along with four East Coast-based 110-foot patrol boats, remain in the region to provide maritime security in the Northern Arabian Gulf.