The USCG Utility Boat, or UTB, is a standard utility boat

Boat

A boat is a watercraft of any size designed to float or plane, to provide passage across water. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas. However, boats such as the whaleboat were designed to be operated from a ship in an offshore environment. In naval terms, a boat is a...

 used by the 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...

 for a variety of inshore missions. The 41 ft (12 m) UTB is designed to operate under moderate weather and sea conditions where its speed and maneuverability make it an ideal platform.

There are presently 172 operational boats. Currently these boats are being phased out, although many will remain in operation for several years to come.

The boats are welded aluminum, with a molded fiberglass superstructure and twin Cummins

Cummins

Cummins Inc. is a Fortune 500 corporation that designs, manufactures, distributes and services engines and related technologies, including fuel systems, controls, air handling, filtration, emission control and electrical power generation systems...

 diesel engine

Diesel engine

A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...

s with conventional shafts and propellers. They are capable of light towing, and were originally fitted with demountable fire monitors, although most have been removed. Typical boat crew is 3.

They were constructed at the Coast Guard Yard

United States Coast Guard Yard

The United States Coast Guard Yard or just Coast Guard Yard is a United States Coast Guard operated shipyard located on Curtis Bay in northern Anne Arundel County, Maryland, just south of the Baltimore city limits. It is the coast guard's sole shipbuilding and major repair facility, and part of the...

 in Baltimore, Maryland, from 1972 to 1979.

Beginning in 2008, these aging boats will be retired and replaced with the response boat-medium

Response boat-medium

The response boat-medium is a 45-foot utility boat used by the United States Coast Guard. It is intended as a replacement for the Coast Guard’s fleet of 41′ utility boats , which have been in use by the Coast Guard since the 1970s. The Coast Guard plans to acquire 180 of these RB-Ms over a 6–10...

 over a 6–10 year period.

Hull characteristics

Hull material - 5086 aluminum

5086 aluminum

5086 is an aluminium alloy, primarily alloyed with magnesium. It is not strengthened by heat treatment, instead becoming stronger due to strain hardening, or cold mechanical working of the material....

Length - 41.3 ft x 13.1 ft x 4.1 ft (12.6 m x 4 m x 1.3 m

Displacement: 13.4 ton

Machinery characteristics

Engine details - (2) Cummins VT-903M, 318 hp @ 2600 rpm, 2:1 reduction gears

Electrical system - 24 volt DC & a 24V to 12V DC to DC converter

Propeller details - (2) 26" D X 28” P x 2" bore, 4-blade Ni-Al-bronze.

Performance

Speed, maximum @ sea state 0 - 26 knots (48 km/h)

Speed, cruise @ sea state 2 - 18 knots (33 km/h) @ 2000 rpm

Fuel capacity (Diesel) - 486.8 US gal (1,840 L)

Range at cruise, sea state 0 - 300 nm (560 km)

External links

• US Coast Guard Datasheet on the 41' UB