According to information published by the USCG on September 2, 2022, the US Coast Guard Cutter Kimball crew on a routine patrol in the Bering Sea encountered a People’s Republic of China Guided Missile Cruiser, Renhai CG 101, sailing approximately 75 nautical miles north of Kiska Island, Alaska.
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A Coast Guard Cutter Kimball crewmember observing a foreign vessel in the Bering Sea. (Picture source: US DoD)
The Kimball crew later identified two more Chinese naval vessels and four Russian naval vessels, including a Russian Federation Navy destroyer, all in a single formation with the Renhai as a combined surface action group operating in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
In September 2021, Coast Guard cutters deployed to the Bering Sea and North Pacific Ocean also encountered Chinese naval vessels, including a surface action group transiting approximately 50 miles off the Aleutian Island chain.
About the Legend-class cutter Kimball
USCGC Kimball (WMSL-756) is the seventh Legend-class cutter of the United States Coast Guard. Kimball is named for Sumner Increase Kimball, who was the organizer of the United States Life-Saving Service and the General Superintendent of the Life-Saving Service from 1878–1915.
The Legend-class cutter, also known as the National Security Cutter (NSC) and Maritime Security Cutter, Large, is the largest active patrol cutter class of the United States Coast Guard.
Entering into service in 2008, the Legend-class is the largest of several new cutter designs developed as part of the Integrated Deepwater System Program.
The cutter has a rear-launching ramp, capable of launching and retrieving the two aft-stored RHIBs while underway. The NSC is built to about 90% military standards.
The NSC is constructed with a steel hull and steel superstructure with steel bulkheads. Ballistic protection is provided for the main gun, and the cutter's crew-served weapons can have steel ballistic shields attached for protection.
The NSC is equipped with a state-of-the-art damage-control system that contributes to the ship's survivability. The NSC is designed to U.S. Navy damage stability criteria and to level-1 survivability standards.
Most of the NSC design is compatible with ABS naval vessel rules. The NSC has degaussing capability. The cutters have a reduced radar cross-section, which gives the cutters a higher degree of stealth over the past cutters. The NSC uses a modified version of the same stealthy mast design as the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.
