SHAH ALAM: In a post in November, last year, Malaysian Defence wrote that the MMEA may well be getting an ex-US Coast Guard this year. This was based on a post by MMEA itself. The post stated that MMEA had a study on absorbing a single ex-US Coast Guard cutter.
The post:
Intriguingly, in a Facebook post by MMEA today (November 8) it was stated that the agency had look into absorbing at least one ex-US Coast guard cutter (an American term for this kind of vessel). This was mentioned in a post on the retirement ceremony for Rear Admiral Maritime Aminuddin Abdul Rashid.
The post stated that among his achievements in the MMEA were that he was the team leader for a suitability study on absorbing the US Coast Guard cutter – USCG Decisive. It stated that this will create a wider collaboration with friendly forces either locally or abroad.
Now we have confirmation that the US intends to transfer one US Coast Guard cutter – though it did not name the ship. The report by the US House of Representative Foreign Affairs Committee Report on Activities for month of December stated that:
This is basically the confirmation that the US is willing and intends to transfer the ship to MMEA. The ship itself is
Checks on the US Coast Guard website showed that Decisive– a Reliance class cutter – was laid in 1967 and commissioned in 1968. She was decommissioned from US Coast Guard on March 2, 2023, after a 55-year service.
The ships of the class are about 65 meter long with a beam of 10 meter. They are equipped with twin diesel engines, a helipad, and a crew of seventy-five. In US Coast Guard service, the ships are equipped with a single 25 mm cannon and two machine-guns
It is interesting to note that since that Facebook post, MMEA has not said anything about the transfer. Will the current situation in the Middle East affect the transfer? I have no idea, really. That said the radar US gifted to us a few years back is already in service as do the MSA and the ScanEagle UAS.
HT to DM
— Malaysian Defence
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View Comments (35)
it is good to confirm this
But the irony...
APMM decommissioned all the ex-vospers because they are too "old"
But the WMECs are as old as the ex-vospers... but OTOH they are more capable of operating offshore by the virtue of their larger size.
It is okay, if they are put through something like OP before commissioned. The hull are overbuilt, and it is not equipped with complicated electronics.
I don't mind if we get handful of WMECs, as intrim OPVs to use for 10-15 years before newer OPVs are built for APMM.
More APMM operated OPVs are what we need for our current challenges with China Coast Guard, not Navy LMS Batch 2s.
Even if the current value of the ship is noted, as usual for US EDA, the ship will be supplied to the recipient country for free. But the recipient country will be responsible for repair to serviceable status and cost to bring the ship back home.
As a patrol vessel, USCG regularly operate the WMECs up to 60 days straight on patrol. Should be enough endurance to shadow encroaching Chinese Coast Guard vessels.
my previous comments on this
https://www.malaysiandefence.com/one-ex-us-coast-guard-cutter-coming-next-year/#comment-882131
Tenkiu PMX! Hope he can use his close ties to wrangle more stuff, heck maybe a clutch of JLTV for free or at least close ally prices to meet our NMLTV requirement.
JLTV is a brand new gear they wont pass it out for free or cheaply though there are many MRAPs ex Iraq and Afghanistan available. That said we have been offered these MRAPs before, we do not want them as well.
As for the JLTV there is a company pushing them for the stated requirements but I think in the current situation it is a long shot.
It got nothing to do with PMX lah, the timeline for the study showed it happened during Ismail Sabri tenure as PM.
When we do get this ship free, will it come with the weapons & sensors as mounted or we have to provide our own?
The sensors will stay as it will cost us money to replace them though likely MMEA will get new radios for the ship. As for the guns, I think MMEA will take weapons with standard ammunition but will ditch the 25mm gun.
Weapons...
Usually RCWS, especially the 25mm bushmasters, are removed and instaled on new USCG cutters.
What we can do is to retrofit our plentiful 40mm bofors, similar to this colombian eex-WMEC, ARC Valle del Cauca (which looks to be in bristol condition)
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FVXnoSpA2ZI/VBd3lmqK8wI/AAAAAAAAGLM/0MXveJnMCiI/s3600/ARC%2BValle%2Bdel%2BCauca.jpg
Just curious, why is it acceptable to receive a ship for the MMEA from the US but not from Japan? Especially in light of the current situation?
No idea really but we are getting interceptors from Japan.
with PMX being buddies with Biden I hope we can get more freebies from daddy murrica
Nothing to do with PMX lah
Malaysian maritime zone, especially the malacca straits and approaches to and from Singapore is one of the busiest waterways in the world. But we don't have any dedicated Emergency Tow Vessels in our fleet. We should have some under APMM, as large patrol vessels that can do emergency rescue, towing, firefighting and salvage.
https://connectgujarat.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/IMG-20200906-WA0030.jpg
This can be used oil and gas OSVs, or dedicated ships build to OSV designs.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency_tow_vessel
We should have at least 3, 1 homeported in Port Klang, 1 in Kuantan and 1 in Bintulu.
I do think APMM will lease these vessels on case by case basis, actually, if and when Jabatan Laut asked to do so.
"but will ditch the 25mm gun."
So its likely there will be a tender for a new weapon mount going out soon once we accept the USCG offer altho its given MMEA will most likely go with their defacto standard of 30mm Aselsan SMASH or make do without any as with Pekan & Arau afaik.
And if its not JLTV at least more of something else. Of course not the war weary & maint intensive OIF MRAPS.
The SMASH guns were not bought via a tender exercise, AFAIK. I think if the 25mm gun is taken off it will not be replaced just like the ones on the two ex-Japanese ships.
Within current APMM development expenditure (DE), we could create a Coast Guard as per lined out in Pelan Perancangan Strategik Maritim Malaysia 2040 (PPSMM 2040) which is to have :
- 20 large OPV
- 96 medium PV
- 228 FIC/RHIB/RHFB/RIB below 20m in length
APMM development expenditure for 2024 is allocated RM621 million (around USD130 million). Having around this level of allocation every year could give APMM around USD500-800 million budget for DE in each of the 5 year Rancangan Malaysia.
Below is my proposed plan for APMM to 2040, based on DE allocation of around USD500-800 million per Rancangan Malaysia.
https://www.malaysiandefence.com/its-lunas/#comment-889183