US Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton, the first national security cutter homeported on the East Coast, entered into active service on December 6, at Union Pier Terminal in downtown Charleston.
The commissioning ceremony for the Coast Guard’s largest and newest 418-foot cutter was presided by Vice Adm. William “Dean” Lee, Coast Guard Atlantic Area commander. .
Capt. Doug Fears, Hamilton’s commanding officer and the most senior member of the crew, said:
Together with my shipmates, we’re beginning the most important milestones in the life of a cutter.
The Cutter Hamilton is now officially in active service to execute the most challenging maritime security, law enforcement, and national defense missions.
Following the commissioning, the cutter and its crew will undergo more training and certification until it deploys next year to conduct maritime law enforcement missions throughout the Western Hemisphere.
The Flagship of the Atlantic cutter fleet is the sixth cutter to be named after Alexander Hamilton, who is also revered as the “Father of the Coast Guard”. As the Secretary of the Treasury in 1790, he established the Revenue Cutter Service (precursor to the Coast Guard) and built the first 10 cutters to enforce tariff laws.
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Press release, Image: USCG