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At the time of the Twilight War, the Coast Guard is a separate military service under the Department of Transportation.. The USCG is responsible for the enforcement of U.S. Laws in coastal waters and on the high seas subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. In addition, the USCG has coastal defense responsibilities under the concept of Maritime Defense Zones.

At the direction of the President of the United States, the Coast Guard can become a part of the Navy (as during both world wars) or it can operate in a war zone as an independent service (as during the Korean and Vietnam Wars).

The Coast Guard was established on August 4, 1790 as the Revenue Marine of the Department of the Treasury. Subsequently, it became the Revenue Cutter Service and, from 1915, the Coast Guard. The USCG incorporated the Lighthouse Service in 1939. The USCG was a component of the Treasury Department from 1790 until it was transferred to the newly established Department of Transportation in 1967.

The main peacetime missions of the USCG are:
(1) Recreational boating safety.
(2) Search and Rescue.
(3) Aids to navigation (responsible for over 400 lighthouses and 13,000 minor navigation lights).
(4) Merchant marine safety.
(5) Environmental protection.
(6) Port safety.
(7) Enforcement of laws and treaties.

The USCG’s last mission comprises the enforcement of the nation’s customs and immigration laws, including the prevention of smuggling and narcotics, as well as the enforcement of fisheries laws, including international treaties related to the United State’s 200-mile national economic zone.

The USCG operates in two main areas: the Atlantic Area (headquarters in New York City) and the Pacific Area (headquarters in San Francisco), with 12 subordinate districts:

1st CG District: Boston, MA
2nd CG District: St. Louis, MO
3rd CG District: New York City, NY
5th CG District: Portsmouth, VA
7th CG District: Miami, FL
8th CG District: New Orleans, LA
9th CG District: Cleveland, OH
11th CG District: Long Beach, CA
12th CG District: San Francisco, CA
13th CG District: Seattle, WA
14th CG District: Honolulu, HI
17th CG District: Juneau, AK

The district commanders control all shore, air and sea activities in their area of responsibility.

In 1985, the commanders of the Coast Guard Atlantic and Pacific Areas were designated as commanders of the newly established Maritime Defense Zones (Atlantic and Pacific, respectively). As MDZ commanders, they report to their respective Navy fleet Commanders in addition to the Commandant of the Coast Guard.

The MDZ commanders are responsible for:

(1) Planning, conducting and coordinating wartime operations in and around U.S. harbors and coasts.
(2) Ensuring an integrated defense plan for the MDZ’s areas of responsibility.
(3) Protecting coastal and nearby sea lines of communications.

Within each MDZ are operating sectors, which are commanded by Coast Guard district or base commanders.

The USCG uses the term vessels for all water craft operated by the service. Within that classification, the term cutter is used for all ships that have “an assigned personnel allowance and that have installed habitability features for the extended support of a permanently assigned crew. All smaller USCG vessels are referred to as boats.

All USCG vessels are prefixed by the letter W (unofficially for White-painted ships). Larger cutters are numbered in a single, sequential series. Cutters less than 100 feet in length and boats have hull numbers with the first two digits indicating the vessel’s overall length.

USCG vessels are painted white, with a narrow blue and wide orange stripe with the Coast Guard shield superimposed on the latter, is carried on the bows of all vessels.

The USCG operates some 200 aircraft based at 26 air stations in the continental United States, Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico.

The most recent Coast Guard aircraft procurement was the acquisition of two E-2C Hawkeye AEW aircraft, for use in anti-drug patrols. A series of HH-60J Seahawk helicopters are being procured as replacements for the aging HH-3F Pelicans.

Two major USCG procurement programs are being completed: 41 HU-25A Guardian Medium-Range Search fixed-wing aircraft are replacing the HU-16 Albatross amphibian and HC-131 Samaritan and 90 HH-65A Dolphin Short Range Recovery helicopters are replacing the HH-52A Sea Guard helicopters. As the HH-65As become operational, the HH-52As are being mothballed at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base near Tucson, AZ.

The cutters of the Hamilton and Bear classes as well as the icebreakers regularly operate helicopters while some of the other cutter classes have landing decks but cannot support helicopters. In wartime, both the Hamilton and Bear classes are to be assigned Navy SH-2F ASW helicopters, but the availability of these helicopters for USCG service is unlikely due to USN requirements and shortfalls, and their effectiveness is limited because of the lack of towed-array sonars for the USCG cutters.

The USCG operates the following aircraft, numbers in parenthesis indicate aircraft in reserve or storage. No aircraft are operated by the Coast Guard Reserve.

VC-4A Gulfstream I (executive transport): 1
VC-11A Gulfstream II (executive transport): 1
E-2C Hawkeye (aerial surveillance): 2
HV-130B/H Hercules (Long-Range Search): 31
HU-25A Guardian (Medium-Range Search): 25
HU-25B Guardian (Oil-Spill Detection): 7
HU-25C Guardian (Drug Interception): 9
HH-60J Jayhawk (Medium-Range Recovery): 19 + 25
HH-65A Dolphin (Short-Range Recovery): 95
HH-3F Pelican (Medium-Range Recovery): 20 (22)
HH-52A Sea Guard (Short-Range Recovery): (86)

Uniformed Coast Guard personnel operate all cutters and boats as well as aircraft. Medical personnel are provided by the U.S. Public Health Service on assignment to the Coast Guard.

Active-duty Coast Guard strength is approximately 5,522 officers, 1,501 warrant officers and 29,583 enlisted men and women (these include 186 female officers and 2,435 female enlisted). In addition, the Coast Guard has 12,000 selected reservists who attend periodic drills as well as summer active-duty training, and 6,000 non-drilling ready reserves.

Coast Guard personnel have Navy-style ranks, the Commandant having the rank of full admiral and the Deputy Commandant vice admiral. There are two other vice admirals (commanders Atlantic and Pacific areas with additional as commanders of the 3rd and 12th Coast Guard Districts, respectively), 6 rear admirals (upper half), and 13 rear admirals (lower half), plus five rear admiral selectees.

Source material is the “13th and 14th Editions, The Ships and Aircraft of the US Fleet” and “Combat Fleets of the World: 1993”