On 15 May, NORTHLAND departed Portsmouth, VA on a three month deployment in support of the Navy's Sixth Fleet. Our primary mission during this patrol will be to conduct exercises and train with the Navies and Coast Guards of other countries, and establish long lasting relationships while promoting the international objectives of the United States. With stops in West Africa and countries bordering the Mediterranean and Black Sea, it should prove to be an interesting and challenging patrol.

In the last couple of weeks leading up to our departure we said goodbye to and welcomed aboard over a dozen shipmates. We anticipate changing out just under 40% of the crew during this trip. During our long transit across the Atlantic Ocean we have taken the opportunity to conduct training in damage control, navigation, and naval warfare skills in order to bring some of the new personnel up to speed. Given the unique nature of our mission we have added a new dimension to our training called Anti-Terrorism Force Protection. Training has focused on teaching the crew how to detect, prevent, and defend against terrorist attacks.

Just after departing Portsmouth, VA we diverted approximately 150 miles to the south to avoid a storm that was creating seas in excess of 15 feet. We managed to avoid the worst of it and after a couple days of rocking and rolling things have calmed down and the skies have cleared.

The NORTHLAND crew is excited about this patrol and the opportunity provided by Fred's Place to share what we have been up to with family and friends. We'll try to provide an update every Friday or more often depending on our weekly activities.

The USCGC NORTHLAND is the second cutter to carry that name and the fourth of the thirteen Famous Class cutters currently serving in the WMEC- 270' fleet. NORTHLAND is home ported in Portsmouth, Virginia. NORTHLAND's keel was laid in 1981, launched in 1982 and commissioned on December 17th, 1984. NORTHLAND was built by Tacoma Boatbuilding Company in Tacoma, Washington.

The first cutter NORTHLAND served in the U.S. Coast Guard from 1927-1946. She was designed to replace Cutter BEAR, the Revenue Cutter Service's most famous cutter of that era. She was used initially to enforce the laws and save lives in the Alaskan waters of the United States. At the outbreak of hostilities in Europe, she was moved east to patrol the waters off of Greenland. On September 1, 1944, she captured the crew and seized a German Naval trawler as the first American Naval capture of World War II. NORTHLAND went on to sink a submarine and capture or destroy German radio and weather stations around Greenland, earning two Battle Stars.

The present USCGC NORTHLAND has many missions including Search and Rescue, Law Enforcement, Homeland Security, and Defense Operations. NORTHLAND's crew is comprised of officers and enlisted personnel with a large variety of different Coast Guard rates such as BM, MK, DC, EM, ET, OS, FS, HS, GM, SK, and YN. NORTHLAND's primary area of operation includes but is not limited to the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico.

Photos

OS2 Atwood, ETC Williamson, and SN Sessions learn how to use our new Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection equipment.

ET3 Edwards (.50cal Gunner) and ENS Seniuk (Weapons Control Officer) standby during a .50cal Gunshoot.

Members of Deck force are ready to launch the boat for an Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection Drill.

Boat Officer BM1 Seyler-Schmidt and the boat crew conduct training during our transit across the Atlantic.

ET3 Fowler works the Sound Commander, NORTHLAND's long range sound amplifier.

GM1 Digennaro watches as BM1 Gervais learns to operate the .50cal during a training evolution.

FS3 Wright cuts up some brownies for lunch.

MKC Wilcut and other members of Aux Shop making sure NORTHLAND's machinery is running smoothly.

ENS Tillman and the members of the bridge watch vigilantly standing watch.

SN Rosteck sanding and finishing some touch ups before we arrive at our first port call.

SN Sessions standing the helm watch.

LTJG Blood reviews the tracklines before taking over as OOD.

BM3 Daniels dresses out in the Fire Fighting Ensembles during a General Emergency Drill.

ET3 Edwards waiting for his call in the helo hanger during a General Emergency Drill

HS1 Marin gives training to stretcher bearers during the transit over.

MK3 Smith shows FN Calkins the ropes when it comes to inspecting the operation of equipment in the fan space.

DC1 Hoyt and FNEM Campbell review the logs after the Security round.