Bollinger delivers Coast Guard cutter

Bollinger Shipyards has delivered the USCGC Nathan Bruckenthal, the 28th fast response cutter, to the U.S. Coast Guard. The Coast Guard took delivery March 29 in Key West, Florida. The vessel’s commissioning is scheduled for July in Washington D.C.
This FRC built by Bollinger Shipyards will be the second FRC to be stationed in Atlantic Beach, N.C., said Ben Bordelon, Bollinger president and CEO. Previous cutters have been stationed around the nation including Alaska and Hawaii. FRCs already in commission have protected the country by seizing tons of narcotics, interdicted thousands of illegal aliens and saved hundreds of lives, Bordelon said.
The 154-foot patrol craft Nathan Bruckenthal is the 28th vessel in the Coast Guard’s Sentinel-class FRC program. The FRC has been described as an operational “game changer,” by senior Coast Guard officials. To build the FRC, Bollinger used an in-service parent craft design based on the Damen Stan Patrol Boat 4708. It has a flank speed of 28 knots, state of the art command, control, communications and computer technology, and a stern launch system for the vessel’s 26 foot cutter boat.
Each FRC is named for an enlisted Coast Guard hero who distinguished him or herself in the line of duty. This vessel is named after Coast Guard hero Nathan Bruckenthal. In April 2004 while serving aboard USS Firebolt, Bruckenthal was killed in the line of duty while conducting maritime intercept operations in the North Arabian Gulf.