Ex-Coast Guard cutter to serve Bangladesh - San Francisco Chronicle
Ex-Coast Guard cutter to serve Bangladesh
Michael Macor, The Chronicle
Coast Guard Capt. Gregory Berg, commanding officer of the Jarvis' last crew, waits to hand over the ship's long glass to a Bangladeshi captain in Alameda.
By Vivian Ho, May 24, 2013
Several dozen members of the U.S. Coast Guard stood at attention along the rails of the cutter Jarvis at an Alameda pier Thursday. On the dock, another crew also stood at attention, their white uniforms bearing the seal of the Bangladeshi navy.
It would be the last time a U.S. crew would be aboard the Jarvis, a 378-foot behemoth that has served the Coast Guard since before many of the Americans were born. And for the Bangladeshis, it would be the first time they would board the ship as its crew.
The occasion was the decommissioning of the Jarvis at Coast Guard Island, the American flag lowered from its bow and stern for the first time in 41 years. As the Jarvis' commanding officer handed the ship's long glass to the Bangladeshi captain, ownership of the vessel passed from one nation to the other.
In recent years the cutter was based out of Honolulu, and served as a search-and-rescue and law enforcement vessel for the Coast Guard.
"I can't count the number of lives saved, the thousands of metric tons of contraband confiscated," said Vice Adm. Paul Zukunft.
The Jarvis is one of 12 high-endurance cutters that the Coast Guard is replacing with new vessels. The service is selling the decommissioned cutters for an undisclosed amount to countries looking to heighten their maritime presence.
Two have been sold to the Philippines and another to Nigeria, the Coast Guard said.
The Jarvis ran its last Coast Guard patrol in September. In March, 20 Bangladeshi sailors arrived for training.
The United States has sold response ships to the Bangladeshi navy before, but Jarvis is the first cutter to join the ranks. The navy renamed the ship the Somudra Joy.
Michael Macor, The Chronicle
Bryan Wright of the Coast Guard holds the former cutter Jarvis' retired colors at the ceremony.
Capt. Mohammad Nazmul Karim Kislu, the cutter's new commanding officer, said his country intends to continue using the cutter for search-and-rescue and law enforcement.
Bangladesh also has a long history of assisting the United Nations in peacekeeping. Kislu said that he spent some of his naval career patrolling the coast of Lebanon to catch illegal arms traders and that the Somudra Joy will probably be pressed into service for those efforts.
"This is a great moment," Kislu said. "We hope to keep the ship running for 20, 30 years more."
Capt. Gregory Burg, commanding officer of the last Jarvis crew, described the day as "bittersweet."
"Whatever ship you command, you grow very fond of it," Burg said. "I know Capt. Kislu and his crew will take great care of it, but it's very hard for me. It's kind of like part of me was transferred today."
Robert Stranathan, who served on the Jarvis' first crew and saw it come out of the shipyard in 1972, expressed sadness as well.
Michael Macor, The Chronicle
The flag of Bangladesh now flies at the stern of the vessel as, Hussein Bellail, (left) and Abdul Qader, with the Bangladesh navy make the exchange, in Alameda, Calif. on Thurs. May 23, 2013. The Coast Guard Cutter Jarvis a 378 foot long, high endurance cutter home-ported in Alameda, Calif. is decommissioned and transferred to the Bangladesh Navy as the BNS Somudro Joy, during a ceremony on Coast Guard Island.
"But for its future, I'm glad to see it remain in service somewhere," he said.
