USS Cyclone was the lead ship of the Navy's Cyclone-class of patrol coastal boats. There is no shortage of choices that the U.S. Navy can choose to replace these boats, such as the 75m Swiftships since the Cyclones are 55m long. The German Navy possesses tactical excellence at employing patrol craft in confined, littoral waters, providing a clear base on which to develop and refine quickly the doctrine necessary to incorporate Gepards into the U.S. Navy. I am trying to find out more specifics. Such a design would require significant investment in research and development (R&D), which only adds to the final cost per hull—a problem already encountered with the LCS program, whose original target of $250 million per hull has more than doubled while projected capability has decreased. He graduated from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland with a master’s in terrorism studies and holds a bachelor’s in political science from Abilene Christian University in Texas. Maintaining a PC inventory will allow the Navy to meet the stated goal of 355 ships and reduce stress on larger surface combatants. They understand its capabilities and limitations well and could support training U.S. Navy crews operating and maintaining the platform. It has the firepower of a small frigate in the size of a PC. The class has significant limitations that make it unsuitable for continued service. I some places mining by aircraft might be a potential threat. Enter the Gepard class. (U.S. Navy / Justin DiNiro). ( Log Out / The Navy needs new patrol coastal ships (PCs), but buying more of the Cyclone-class will not meet the requirement of a PC for today’s threat environment. This Channel does not Recieve Monetization for Anything ! I personally think that the Coast Guard should replace the Cyclone class with Sentinel class cutters with a 40mm Bofors instead of the 25mm Bushmaster. They are going to decommission all of them. We would also improve interoperability with our allies as a new generation of U.S. Navy sailors became comfortable working alongside allied navies and using NATO doctrine and procedures. By Lieutenants Colin Barnard and Ian Sundstrom, U.S. Navy, Don’t Build a New U.S. Patrol Craft—Buy a German One, About U.S. USS CYCLONE was the lead ship of the Navy's Cyclone-class of patrol coastal boats. When the PCs retire in a few years, the large, capable multimission cruisers and destroyers will be stretched more and more thinly—or those missions will go unfulfilled. @Jake, The Coast had some Cyclone class at one time, but this is up to the Navy. One has to consider this missions the Cyclones are tasked with. As helpful as the Cyclones are, they are aging out and their performance and offensive/defensive characteristics are getting outdated. The Cheetah-class would be a fast, agile, shallow-draft platform, capable of fulfilling the presence and MSO roles of the Cyclone-class while also punching above its weight in support of the high-end fight as part of a networked combat team with manned and unmanned platforms. A single fast attack craft (FAC) of the Chinese Navy’s Houbei-class could find and destroy an entire formation of Cyclone-class PCs with its antiship cruise missiles from a distance as the class lacks self-defense capability against a missile threat. Their decommissioning may put a greater load on the Coast Guard unit as it begins to receive Webber class as replacements for the existing six Island class patrol boats. An MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter (right) conducts operations with an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter and the USS Coronado, which is one of nine ships the Navy will inactivate next fiscal year. Of the original fourteen one was transferred to the Philippine Navy. They can make good use of them . Replacement for the Attack class Patrol Boats Here are a few pics that show the comparison between the older attack class and the new Freemantle class patrol boats. Every Chinese or Russian ship or fishing vessel is potentially an agent of their respective navy potentially providing intelligence or targeting, laying mines, dropping off agents or just intentionally ramming critical US assets. (U.S. Navy) All of this combined to create a light, powerful craft that was fast as hell. A Puma unmanned aerial vehicle. The Swiftboat 75 could work, but bear in mind that it has more capital expenses and worth with the helicopter deck and embarked MH-60. Five of these ships served with the Coast Guard for a few years before being returned to the Navy. Finally, by purchasing a modified Gepard-class and leveraging our NATO allies’ expertise, we would fulfill broader political-military objectives. The Navy has been slow to adapt from a Cold War era 'blue water' Navy, focused on fighting set-piece prelude to WWIII engagements on the open ocean, to one where interdiction, territorial security, and special operations are also of a high priority. At almost $600 million per hull, however, it is far too expensive a platform to be relegated to MSO and infrastructure protection and has been slated to perform surface warfare, antisubmarine warfare, and mine warfare missions. The Powhatan-class T-ATF being removed from service is USS Sioux, which will be scrapped. U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jacob I. Allison LCS are also too large to go many of the places the Cyclone class were able to. Sign up to get updates about new releases and event invitations. USS Monsoon (PC 4), Little Creek, VA USS Thunderbolt (PC 12), Manama, Bahrain ", "5 More US Patrol Ships Heading to the Gulf. It would have upgraded radars, an electronic warfare suite, communications equipment, and would be Link-16 or cooperative-engagement-capability capable. A small swarm of fast inshore attack craft (FIAC), as envisaged in Iranian doctrine, can easily overwhelm even an upgraded Cyclone. Esper is on the right tract. Working together also would improve allied navies’ integration with U.S. Navy doctrine development, helping to refine the distributed lethality concept. We would likely see a revitalization of Maritime Defense Zones. Most of these ships were launched between 1992 and 1994. Nonetheless, the Cyclones lack certain features such as ASW, AAW, and SSM. Lieutenant Sundstrom is assigned to the Nimitz Operational Intelligence Center in Washington, D.C. In that size, however, it carries a 76-mm main gun, four Exocet antiship cruise missiles, a rolling-airframe missile (RAM) launcher for antiaircraft and antiship missile defense, electronic warfare capabilities, and two heavy machine guns. The Navy’s 13 Cyclone-class patrol boats -- also known as “PCs” for “patrol, coastal” -- each displace just 330 tons of water. The current crane and ship s boat will be removed and replaced with an aft deck ramp - which extends down to below the water line. First, the PCs are underarmed. Their decommissioning may put a greater load on the Coast Guard unit as it begins to receive Webber class as replacements for the existing six Island class patrol boats. Usually the Navy decommissions when something new is on the horizon to replace these boats. The existence of the new strategy was revealed earlier this year by Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday at the WEST 2020 conference in San Diego. Modified and modernized, a U.S. “Cheetah” class would be able to do everything the Cyclones do—and also operate in a moderate-to-high threat environment against larger enemy surface combatants as part of a networked, combined-arms team. I knew the new plan was coming. The PCs free larger combatants for high-end tasks, but when they are unavailable, destroyers and cruisers often must conduct MSO and presence missions. The Cyclone-class patrol ships are a class of United States Navy coastal patrol boats. Its removal will leave two T-ATFs in service. the Cyclone class PCs in Bahrain will be decommissioined at a rate of about three per year. Don't Forget To : Comment / Like / Share / Subscribe ThankYou ! The first attempt to replace the PB Mk IIIs led to an order being placed in 1984 for a stealthy surface effect ship, the Special Warfare Craft, Medium, or SWCM, with a length of about 83 feet (25 m) and a displacement of 150 long tons (150 t). But simply buying more Cyclones will not suffice. Three of these ships have made major deployments to the western Pacific and all have been used as development platforms to mature the type’s concept of operations. The Military Sealift Command will remove from service one fleet ocean tug (T-ATF). The Patrol Coastal Combat Retrieval System (CCRS) program will modify the aft deck of Cyclone Class Patrol Coastal ships to be capable of retrieving various combatant craft. I misunderstood my source. The Patrol Coastal Combat Retrieval System (CCRS) program will modify the aft deck of Cyclone Class Patrol Coastal ships to be capable of retrieving various combatant craft. The Fremantle-class patrol boats were coastal patrol vessels operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) from 1979 to 2007. The Cheetah-class would be able to defend itself against FIAC swarm attacks and go toe-to-toe with larger FAC. The Cyclone-class also lacks the ability to integrate its sensors with other ships to build a shared tactical picture. The Cyclone class patrol coastal ships were proposed in 1990 as a replacement for the Navy Special Warfare (NSW) Command’s aging MK III patrol boats for insertion of SEAL team members. For the Island class cutters in the Persian Gulf, the Cyclone class have served as better armed, big brothers, adding a bit of muscle to escort missions where Iranian Fast Inshore Attack Craft might be encountered. The 26 meter (85 foot) craft have a top speed of over 70 kilometers an hour and a range of over a thousand kilometers (at a much slower cruising speed.) Lots of things might come out of this but it would all require new training and exercises to test it. Would not be surprised if it is delayed to COVID. Change ), Navy to Decommission Cyclone Class Patrol Craft, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xilYlZgqZl4, https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2020/august/guided-missile-patrol-boats-distributed-maritime-operation, http://cimsec.org/lifting-the-veil-on-the-lightly-manned-surface-combatant/44650. Combined, these deficiencies make the class unable to operate in the current threat environment. ARABIAN GULF (Sept. 16, 2018) A MK-60 Griffin surface-to-surface missile is launched from coastal patrol ship USS Thunderbolt (PC 12). Other countries equip Cyclone hulls with a 76.2mm, Phalanx, and 4 ASMs. The Coast Guard should have a large role in Naval Control of Shipping, largely a forgotten art, although the British probably have some corporate memory. They are not used as FACs. The Congress doesn’t like any of the above, and said NO new ships UNTIL you show us “de plan”. It was planned to build 16 PBCs to replace the 17 PB Mk IIIs, with first deliveries expected in 1991. The Navy plans to decommission its 12 Cyclone-class ships, but no timetable has been announced yet. Regularly we see a count of “Battleforce ships”“Battleforce ships” that includes everything from aircraft carriers down to civilian crewed, unarmed fleet tugs (T-ATF), salvage ships (T-ARS), and high speed intra-theater transports (T-EPF, really aluminum hulled, high speed ferries). Alan, I think Phil is just saying there is an opportunity to transfer some to the Philippines, not that there is a plan to do it. Until ten of the class found a home in Bahrain, the Navy seemed to have had a hard time figuring out what to do with them. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. The SWCM, nicknamed \"Se… He was previously Gunnery Officer on board the USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) and weapons officer on board the USS Firebolt (PC-10). 1992 and 1994 mitigated by partnering with our allies trials and cyclone patrol boat replacement the craft is the replacement... 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