ALAMEDA – The Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf is scheduled to return home to Alameda, Calif., on Veteran’s Day Nov. 11, at 10 a.m., following a 144-day deployment.
The nation’s first National Security Cutter set sail June 20 for Hawaii to participate in the world’s largest naval exercise, Rim of the Pacific 2012. RIMPAC’s mission is to increase interoperability between Pacific Rim armed forces to promote stability and prosperity around the world. This year 22 countries were involved taking part in various naval exercises including maritime interdiction and vessel boarding evolutions.
As the primary cutter in support of Operation Arctic Shield, Bertholf increased maritime domain awareness, conducted community outreach and increased maritime safety and security in the Arctic Circle. In the Bering Sea, Bertholf engaged in living marine resource enforcement and conducted 12 boardings of red king crab fishing vessels.
“We pressed the multi-mission capabilities of the National Security Cutter in the world’s largest maritime exercise, in the harshest of maritime environments in the Arctic, and in the Bering Sea ensuring regulation and safety of the Deadliest Catch Crab fleet,” said Capt. Thomas Crabbs, commanding officer Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf. “The ship and crew performed in superb fashion over an extended and challenging period.”
Cutters like Bertholf routinely conduct operations from South America to the Bering Sea where their unmatched combination of range, speed, and ability to operate in extreme weather provides the mission flexibility necessary to conduct counter-narcotics, homeland security, and alien migrant interdiction operations, domestic fisheries protection, search and rescue, and other Coast Guard missions at great distances from shore keeping threats far from the U.S. mainland.
