The Coast Guard last week said it has completed a $21 million in-service vessel sustainment (ISVS) on its 270-foot medium-endurance cutter the Harriet Lane, which included an MC38 Mod 3 machine gun system, a first for the Famous-class vessels.
The Harriet Lane is the second Famous-class cutter to complete a 15-month service life extension, the first being the Seneca, which was finished in March 2022.
In addition to the gun system and a new electrical system, the service life extension program for the Harriet Lane included more than 100 work items. Both cutters served as prototypes for new electrical and structural work and the Harriet Lane was the prototype for the MK38, which is built by BAE Systems.
The production phase of the life extensions for the Famous-class vessels began on July 1 with the Coast Guard Cutter Spencer, which is also slated to last 15 months. The work includes electrical, weapons system, engine, and structural areas. The Spencer will be the first cutter to receive all items, including new main diesel engines.
The life extensions on the Famous-class cutters are planned through spring 2028 and will also include the vessels Legare, Campbell, Forward, Escanaba, and Tahoma. The work will be done at the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore, Md.
The ongoing work on the medium-endurance cutters addresses reliability, supportability, and obsolescence issues to keep the ships operational until the Coast Guard’s new 360-foot Heritage-class offshore patrol cutters begin to enter the fleet in numbers.