| USCGC Knight Island (WPB-1348) USCGC Knight Island (WPB-1348)
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 USCG | |
| Namesake | Knight Island, Alaska |
| Builder | Bolinger Shipyard in Lockport, Louisiana |
| Commissioned | April 22, 1992 |
| Homeport | Key West, FL |
| Identification | NMFN |
| Motto | We Own the Night |
| Fate | Active |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement | 168 tons |
| Length | 110 ft (34 m) |
| Beam | 21 ft (6.4 m) |
| Draft | 6.5 ft (2.0 m) |
| Propulsion | Twin Turbo Charged Diesel Caterpillar |
| Speed | 30+ knots |
| Range | 9,900 miles |
| Endurance | 6 days |
| Boats & landing craft carried | 1 - Cutter Boat Medium (90 HP outboard engine) |
| Complement | 18 personnel (2 officers, 16 enlisted) |
| Armament | list error: <br /> list (help) 25 mm Machine Gun 2 x .50 caliber Machine Gun Various Small Arms |
USCGC Knight Island (WPB-1348) receives her namesake from the Knight Island in the Prince William Sounds of Alaska. Knight Island was placed in commission on April 22, 1992 at Bolinger Shipyard in Lockport, Louisiana. Kngiht Island and the other 48 Island class cutter’s construction are based on the internationally known Vosper-Thornycraft design. Her hull is a semi-displacement type monohull made of high strength steel, while the main deck and superstructure are aluminum. Knight Island employs an active fin stabilization system to improve her sea keeping abilities. With a top speed in excess of 30 knots and a cruising speed of 26 knots, the ship is capable of enduring unsupported operations for six days and accommodates two officers and sixteen enlisted personnel.
Island Class Patrol Boat Overview edit
The 110' Island-class Patrol Boats are a U.S. Coast Guard modification of a highly successful British-designed patrol boat. With excellent range and seakeeping capabilities, the Island Class, all named after U.S. islands, replaced the older 95-foot Cape-class patrol boats. These cutters are equipped with advanced electronics and navigation equipment and are used on the front lines of the Coast Guard's Maritime Homeland Security, Migrant Interdiction, Fisheries Enforcement, and Search-and-Rescue missions.
History edit
Originally homeported in Freeport, Texas, Knight Island’s home port was changed to St. Petersburg, Florid in the summer of 2000. In 2008, Knight Island’s homeport was changed again to Key West, Fl. Knight Island’s current complement is of two seperate crews, known as the Port and Starboard Crew in support of the Coast Guard's new effort to maximize the operational hours of the patrol boats in the Coast Guard's Seventh District by utilizing a dual-crew manning concept.
Typical patrols in Key West, Florida’s area of operations involved search and rescue, alien migrant interdiction operations, fisheries law enforcement, counter narcotics operations, and homeland security.
Current edit
Knight Island main patrol area is the Florida Straits. Knight Island often interdicts illegal migrants from go-fast vessels and homebuilt rustica rafts from Cuba. In the past two years, Knight Island has cared for over 1000 illegal migrants on her decks and conducting numerous politically sensitive repatriations to Cabanas, Cuba.
