USCGC Staten Island (WAGB-278) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

USCGC Staten Island (WAGB-278) was a United States Coast Guard

United States Coast Guard

The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...

. Laid down on 9 June 1942 and launched on 28 December 1942, the ship was commissioned on 26 February 1944, and almost immediately afterward transferred to the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

, under the Lend Lease program, under the name Severny Veter, which loosely translates as Northwind, until 19 December 1951. When returned to the United States Navy, she was designated USS Northwind until 15 April 1952, when she was renamed Staten Island to distinguish her from her successor which had been laid down shortly after WAGB-278 was lent to the Soviets. The ship was transferred to the US Coast Guard as USCGC Staten Island in February 1965, and served until November 1974, before being scrapped.

Construction

Staten Island was one of the icebreakers designed by Lieutenant commander

Lieutenant Commander

Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...

Edward Thiele and Gibbs & Cox of New York, who modeled them after plans for European icebreakers he obtained before the start of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. She was the first of seven completed ships of the Wind-class

Wind class icebreaker

The Wind-class icebreakers were a line of diesel electric-powered icebreakers in service with the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Coast Guard and Soviet Navy from 1944 through the late 1970s...

of icebreaker

Icebreaker

An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller vessels .For a ship to be considered an icebreaker, it requires three traits most...

s operated by the United States Coast Guard

United States Coast Guard

. She was launched on 28 December 1942 and commissioned on 26 February 1944. Once commissioned, she was almost immediately transferred to the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

under the Lend-Lease

Lend-Lease

Lend-Lease was the program under which the United States of America supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, China, Free France, and other Allied nations with materiel between 1941 and 1945. It was signed into law on March 11, 1941, a year and a half after the outbreak of war in Europe in...

program.

Staten Island, along with the other Wind-class icebreakers, was heavily armed for an icebreaker due to her design being crafted during World War II

World War II

. Her main battery consisted of two twin-mount 5 in (127 mm) deck gun

Deck gun

A deck gun is a type of artillery cannon mounted on the deck of a ship or submarine.The deck gun was used as a defensive weapon against smaller boats or ships and in certain cases where torpedo use was limited. Typically a crew of three; gunner, loader, and layer, operated the gun, while others...

s. Her anti-aircraft weaponry consisted of three quad-mounted Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft autocannons and six Oerlikon 20 mm autocannons. She also carried six K-gun depth charge

Depth charge

A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...

projectors and a Hedgehog

Hedgehog (weapon)

The Hedgehog was an anti-submarine weapon developed by the Royal Navy during World War II, that was deployed on convoy escort warships such as destroyers to supplement the depth charge. The weapon worked by firing a number of small spigot mortar bombs from spiked fittings...

anti-submarine mortar

Anti-submarine mortar

Anti-submarine mortars are artillery pieces deployed on ships for the purpose of sinking submarines by a direct hit with a small explosive charge. They are often larger versions of the mortar used by infantry and fire a projectile in relatively the same manner...

as anti-submarine weapon

Anti-submarine weapon

An anti-submarine weapon is any one of a range of devices that are intended to act against a submarine, and its crew, to destroy the vessel or to destroy or reduce its capability as a weapon of war...

Soviet Union (1944–1951)

Severny Veter, ( or "North Wind"), was transferred to the Soviet Navy

Soviet Navy

The Soviet Navy was the naval arm of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have played an instrumental role in a Warsaw Pact war with NATO, where it would have attempted to prevent naval convoys from bringing reinforcements across the Atlantic Ocean...

in February 1944 through the Lend-Lease

Lend-Lease

program, serving in the Northern Route Command. In 1946 she was renamed Kapitan Belousov after Soviet icebreaker commander Captain M.P. Belousov. Custody of Belousov was returned to the United States Navy on 19 December 1951 at Bremerhaven

Bremerhaven

Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...

, Germany.

United States Navy (1951–1966)

On 19 December 1951 the ship was renamed USS Northwind. On 25 February 1952 the Northwind arrived at Boston Naval Shipyard, Boston, Massachusetts, for overhaul and fitting out as a unit of the United States Atlantic Fleet.

On 15 April 1952 she was renamed Staten Island to distinguish her from her successor ship , which had been laid down shortly after the ship was sent to the Soviets. Staten Island was named for the New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

borough of Staten Island

Staten Island

Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...

. Ironically the major interstate highway that runs through the borough is numbered as Interstate 278

Interstate 278

Interstate 278 is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in New Jersey and New York, United States. The road runs from U.S. Route 1/9 in Linden, New Jersey to the Bruckner Interchange in the New York City borough of the Bronx...

.

Overhaul was completed by 30 June 1952, and on 1 July 1952 she sailed from Boston to Grenfell Sound, Labrador

Labrador

Labrador is the distinct, northerly region of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It comprises the mainland portion of the province, separated from the island of Newfoundland by the Strait of Belle Isle...

, to conduct ice reconnaissance in Frobisher Bay

Frobisher Bay

Frobisher Bay is a relatively large inlet of the Labrador Sea in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is located in the southeastern corner of Baffin Island...

, returning to Boston on 8 September.

Staten Island departed Boston for Resolution Island

Resolution Island (Nunavut)

Resolution Island is one of the many uninhabited Canadian Arctic islands in Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut. It is a Baffin Island offshore island located in Hudson Strait. It has an area of...

on 25 April 1952 to relieve , returning to Boston on 10 June. During August, Staten Island became the first Navy ship to cut through the Davis Strait

Davis Strait

Davis Strait is a northern arm of the Labrador Sea. It lies between mid-western Greenland and Nunavut, Canada's Baffin Island. The strait was named for the English explorer John Davis , who explored the area while seeking a Northwest Passage....

from Thule to Ellesmere Island

Ellesmere Island

Ellesmere Island is part of the Qikiqtaaluk Region of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. Lying within the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, it is considered part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands, with Cape Columbia being the most northerly point of land in Canada...

.

In the following year, 1954, Staten Island was involved in three ice breaking operations through 15 December 1954.

In 1955 her home port was changed to Seattle, Washington

Seattle, Washington

Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...

. Staten Island sailed for Seattle on 19 May 1955, and arrived there on 10 June 1955 for duty with Service Squadron 1. From June through September 1955, she broke ice for ships resupplying the Distant Early Warning Line

Distant Early Warning Line

The Distant Early Warning Line, also known as the DEW Line or Early Warning Line, was a system of radar stations in the far northern Arctic region of Canada, with additional stations along the North Coast and Aleutian Islands of Alaska, in addition to the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Iceland...

radar stations, returning to Seattle on 28 September 1955.

Staten Island departed Seattle on 5 July 1956 to lead another convoy of resupply ships bound for the Distand Early Warning Line through the ice, returning to Seattle on 6 September 1956. She was then assigned to Operation Deep Freeze II

Operation Deep Freeze

Operation Deep Freeze is the codename for a series of United States missions to Antarctica, beginning with "Operation Deep Freeze I" in 1955–56, followed by "Operation Deep Freeze II", "Operation Deep Freeze III", and so on...

and departed Seattle for Antarctica on 3 November 1956. Staten Island rendezvoused with cargo ship near the Panama Canal Zone

Panama Canal Zone

The Panama Canal Zone was a unorganized U.S. territory located within the Republic of Panama, consisting of the Panama Canal and an area generally extending 5 miles on each side of the centerline, but excluding Panama City and Colón, which otherwise would have been partly within the limits of...

before both continued on for Antarctica, arriving on 15 December 1956 at the Weddell Sea

Weddell Sea

The Weddell Sea is part of the Southern Ocean and contains the Weddell Gyre. Its land boundaries are defined by the bay formed from the coasts of Coats Land and the Antarctic Peninsula. The easternmost point is Cape Norvegia at Princess Martha Coast, Queen Maud Land. To the east of Cape Norvegia is...

pack ice, and then breaking through the Antarctic Circle

Antarctic Circle

The Antarctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs south of the Equator.-Description:...

on 20 December 1956 en route to Cape Adams

Cape Adams

Cape Adams is an abrupt rock scarp marking the south tip of Bowman Peninsula and forming the north side of the entrance to Gardner Inlet, on the east coast of Palmer Land in Antarctica. It was discovered by the Ronne Antarctic Research Expedition , 1947–48, under Ronne, and named by him for Lt....

. The icebreaker led Wyandot from Cape Adams to Gould Bay

Gould Bay

Gould Bay is a bay located at the junction of Filchner Ice Shelf with the northeast corner of Berkner Island, in the southern Weddell Sea. It was discovered by the Ronne Antarctic Research Expedition , 1947–48, under the leadership of Commander Finn Ronne, U.S. Navy Reserve, who named this bay for...

where Ellsworth Station

Ellsworth Station

The Ellsworth Station was an Antarctic base established by the United States during the 1957 International Geophysical Year. The base was soon handed over to Argentina and subsequently abandoned and covered with ice in 1962.-History:...

was then assembled. She departed Gould Bay on 15 February 1957 to return home to Seattle, arriving there on 5 April 1957.

On 15 October 1963 while on the summer Arctic mission, the Captain, Commander John Metschel, and a Navy helicopter pilot were lost at sea doing ice reconnaissance. The only remains found were one of the helicopter's pontoons floating at sea.

On 1 February 1966, Staten Island was decommissioned by the United States Navy and struck from the Naval Vessel Register

Naval Vessel Register

The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...

on 1 March 1966.

United States Coast Guard (1963–1973)

She was then transferred to the United States Coast Guard

United States Coast Guard

, where she was redesignated USCGC Staten Island (WAGB-278), and home-ported at Seattle. During the summer of 1966, the engineering plant was upgraded and modifications were made to the flight deck and hangar to allow operation of a HH-52A Seaguard Helicopter. The Coast Guard then deployed her to Antarctica as part of that season's "Operation Deep Freeze

Operation Deep Freeze

" on 22 September 1966.

Staten Island returned from her Antarctic voyage on 6 April 1967 and was then sent into the Arctic Ocean

Arctic Ocean

The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...

above Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

for four months during the spring and summer of 1967 during which time she ran aground while traveling west from Prudhoe Bay and sustained minor damage. Staten Island then broke ice to assist her sister ship, , twice during the 1967 fall ice season; in September 1967 Northwind lost a propeller and became locked in the ice, and she was trapped again in October-November 1967 450 nautical miles (833.4 km) north-northwest of Point Barrow, Alaska.

During July and August 1968 Staten Island was assigned to conduct an oceanographic survey

Oceanography

Oceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...

of the Chukchi Sea

Chukchi Sea

Chukchi Sea is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is bounded on the west by the De Long Strait, off Wrangel Island, and in the east by Point Barrow, Alaska, beyond which lies the Beaufort Sea. The Bering Strait forms its southernmost limit and connects it to the Bering Sea and the Pacific...

-Bering Strait

Bering Strait

The Bering Strait , known to natives as Imakpik, is a sea strait between Cape Dezhnev, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia, the easternmost point of the Asian continent and Cape Prince of Wales, Alaska, USA, the westernmost point of the North American continent, with latitude of about 65°40'N,...

area as part of a cooperative effort between the Coast Guard Oceanographic Unit, the University of Alaska and the University of Washington

University of Washington

University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...

.

On 10-11 March 1969, she rescued the crew of the fishing vessel FV Martindale which had run aground off Akun Island

Akun Island

Akun Island is one of the Fox Islands subgroup of the Aleutian Islands in Aleutians East Borough of southwestern Alaska, USA. It lies east of Akutan Island and southwest of Unimak Island across the Unimak Pass. The Krenitzin Islands lie to its south and southeast across the Avatanak Strait...

. Staten Island was dispatched to the Arctic Ocean on 7 July 1969 as an oceanographic research platform and escort vessel for supply operations. There she helped reach open water off Point Barrow

Point Barrow

Point Barrow or Nuvuk is a headland on the Arctic coast in the U.S. state of Alaska, northeast of Barrow. It is the northernmost point of all the territory of the United States, at...

on 7 September 1969, relieved Northwind on 22 September 1969 after that vessel suffered engine trouble, and assisted the Canadian icebreaker in escorting the tanker eastward through the Northwest Passage

Northwest Passage

The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...

. Staten Island arrived in New York on 9 November 1969, and departed for Seattle on 9 December 1969 by way of the Panama Canal with stops in San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...

, and Acapulco, Mexico. Upon her arrival back in Seattle, Staten Island became the fourth United States ship to circumnavigate the North American continent

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

, traveling over 23000 miles (37,014.8 km) in the process.

She departed Seattle on 6 July 1970 to conduct scientific tests and evaluation of crude oil spread rate in the Arctic Ocean. Later that summer when a large group of 20 tugboats and 40 barges bound for Prudhoe Bay with vital supplies became trapped in pack ice, Staten Island worked around the clock for 3½ days to tow and push the barges to open water. She freed the fouled screw of the tugboat Active 30 nautical miles (55.6 km) southwest of Point Barrow

Point Barrow

Point Barrow or Nuvuk is a headland on the Arctic coast in the U.S. state of Alaska, northeast of Barrow. It is the northernmost point of all the territory of the United States, at...

on 14 August 1970, and returned to Seattle on 20 August 1970. Staten Island departed Seattle once more later in 1970 as part of "Operation Deep Freeze 1971

Operation Deep Freeze

".

On 28 February 1971, while en route to Mawson Station

Mawson Station

Mawson Station is one of three permanent Australian bases in the Australian Antarctic Territory of East Antarctica. Named after Antarctic explorer Sir Douglas Mawson, the base is managed by the Australian Antarctic Division...

she struck an uncharted pinnacle

Pinnacle

A pinnacle is an architectural ornament originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire...

14 nautical miles (25.9 km) north of the station, suffering significant damage, including a punctured hull that flooded four compartments, but no crew injuries. After completing temporary repairs in Melbourne, Australia and certified seaworthy, was ordered to escort the Staten Island home to Seattle.

In mid-March 1972, during "Operation Deep Freeze", while en route from Dunedin

Dunedin

Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, to Suva

Suva

Suva features a tropical rainforest climate under the Koppen climate classification. The city sees a copious amount of precipitation during the course of the year. Suva averages 3,000 mm of precipitation annually with its driest month, July averaging 125 mm of rain per year. In fact,...

, Fiji

Fiji

Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

, Staten Island was broadsided by a rogue wave and came within 2 degrees of capsizing. While ascending the ladder to the bridge to relieve the helmsman, Seaman Cotten hailed the Officer of the Day

Officer of the day

At smaller military installations where no provost marshal has been assigned, the officer of the day is a detail rotated each day among the unit/post's commissioned officers to oversee security, guard, and law enforcement considerations...

moments before an 80 ft (24.4 m) wall of water struck the port beam. With the bridge doors open the bridge instantly filled with water, as well as the stairwell in which Seaman Cotten was prevented from ascending. The ship listed heavily to starboard, began to shake with one propeller turning in the air, then rolled back to port causing the starboard wing to scoop up seawater, sending everyone splashing toward the overhead (again). Only one man was injured; a fireman climbing up from the engine room who twisted an ankle. In early March 1972 Staten Island became the first United States Government vessel to enter the port in Dunedin.

Later in 1972 the ship departed Seattle for Arctic Summer North carrying scientists from the University of Anchorage

University of Alaska Anchorage

The University of Alaska Anchorage is the largest school of the University of Alaska System, with about 16,500 students, about 14,000 of whom attend classes at Goose Lake, its main campus in Anchorage....

, the University of Washington

University of Washington

, and the Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...

to make determinations on the effects drilling for oil on the north slope of Alaska

Alaska North Slope

The Alaska North Slope is the region of the U.S. state of Alaska located on the northern slope of the Brooks Range along the coast of two marginal seas of the Arctic Ocean, the Chukchi Sea being on the western side of Point Barrow, and the Beaufort Sea on the eastern.The region contains the...

would have on the environment.

During February 1973 Staten Island participated in the Bering Sea Experiment as part of her Arctic West Winter activities, 475 nautical miles (879.7 km) north of Adak Island

Adak Island

Adak Island is an island near the western extent of the Andreanof Islands group of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Alaska's southernmost town, Adak, is located on the island...

, with the Soviet research vessel

Research vessel

A research vessel is a ship designed and equipped to carry out research at sea. Research vessels carry out a number of roles. Some of these roles can be combined into a single vessel, others require a dedicated vessel...

Priboy, and several aircraft. From 7 March through 3 April 1973, she was attached to Task Unit 57.0 of the Pacific Fleet

United States Pacific Fleet

The United States Pacific Fleet is a Pacific Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources under the operational control of the United States Pacific Command. Its home port is at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hawaii. It is commanded by Admiral Patrick M...

during SUBICEX 1-73. Her crew received refresher training between 5 and 16 November 1973, at which time she departed Seattle to escort ships in "Operation Deep Freeze 1973

Operation Deep Freeze

".

Staten Island was decommissioned on 15 November 1974, and sold for scrap.

Awards

Staten Island was awarded the Coast Guard Unit Commendation

Coast Guard Unit Commendation

The Coast Guard Unit Commendation is the highest peacetime unit award that may be awarded to military commands of the United States Coast Guard. The decoration was first created in 1963 and is presented to members of any Coast Guard unit that distinguishes itself by valorous or extremely...

with Operational Distinguishing Device

Operational Distinguishing Device

The Operational Distinguishing Device is a decoration of the United States Coast Guard which may be awarded as an attachment to certain personal and unit awards. The device is awarded as a silver "O" device, either centered on the award ribbon or to the middle-right if there are an even number of...

for the periods of 23 September–8 October 1967, 21 September–1 November 1969 and 7 March 1973–3 April 1973. From 12 December 1970 through 10 March 1971, Staten Island participated in Task Force 43, along with , and , for which she was awarded the Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation. She was awarded another Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation for her service in Task Force 43 from 5 December 1973 through 22 February 1974.

Coast Guard Unit Commendation Coast Guard Unit Commendation The Coast Guard Unit Commendation is the highest peacetime unit award that may be awarded to military commands of the United States Coast Guard. The decoration was first created in 1963 and is presented to members of any Coast Guard unit that distinguishes itself by valorous or extremely... with Operational Distinguishing Device Operational Distinguishing Device The Operational Distinguishing Device is a decoration of the United States Coast Guard which may be awarded as an attachment to certain personal and unit awards. The device is awarded as a silver "O" device, either centered on the award ribbon or to the middle-right if there are an even number of... and 2 award star Award star An award star is a decoration issued to personnel of the United States Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard in lieu of multiple awards of the same award. An award star is very similar to an oak leaf cluster, which serves the same purpose in the United States Army and United States Air Force... s	Coast Guard Meritorious Unit Commendation with Operational Distinguishing Device Operational Distinguishing Device The Operational Distinguishing Device is a decoration of the United States Coast Guard which may be awarded as an attachment to certain personal and unit awards. The device is awarded as a silver "O" device, either centered on the award ribbon or to the middle-right if there are an even number of...	Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation

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