The Trump administration’s budget blueprint for FY ’18 includes Coast Guard funding to continue efforts on a new heavy polar icebreaker and the Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC), Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft told a Senate panel on Wednesday.
There is a $1 billion mark in the Navy’s shipbuilding budget for the icebreaker and the program remains on an accelerated track with ongoing industry studies and plans to award a contract and “start cutting steel in the next year,” Zukunft told the Senate Commerce Coast Guard Subcommittee.
In his prepared testimony, Zukunft said a Request for Proposal for detail design and construction of the heavy icebreaker is expected to be released in FY ’18, which begins on Oct. 1.
Zukunft said that he is “delighted” that there is funding for the OPC in the FY ’18 budget plans, adding that he didn’t know off-hand the exact amount but said he would provide it to the panel. The program remains on track to deliver the first medium-class endurance cutter in 2021, he said.
The Trump administration last week released a blueprint outlining its planned budget request for FY ’18. The blueprint did not contain the usual funding lines for various programs across the federal government and also lacked program details that typically accompany the annual budget request. The detailed request is expected to be submitted to Congress in May.
Zukunft also said in his prepared remarks that during proof-of-concept evaluations, a small unmanned aircraft system (SUAS) flew 191 hours during the first month underway aboard the National Security Cutter Stratton. He said the evaluation of the SUAS “validated this capability and will enhance the effectiveness of these cutters.”
The SUAS system assisted in the interdiction and disruption of more than 5,000-pounds of contraband, Zukunft said. He also said the Coast Guard is looking into options for a land-based UAS system to improve domain awareness and assist its surface assets.