USCGC Calhoun

USCGC Calhoun (WMSL-759) is the tenth Legend-class cutter of the United States Coast Guard.^[4] She is the first ship to be named after Charles L. Calhoun, the first Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard.

USCGC Calhoun (WMSL-759)

History
United States
Name	Calhoun
Namesake	Charles L. Calhoun
Awarded	21 December 2018
Builder	Huntington Ingalls Industries, Pascagoula, Mississippi
Cost	$499.76 million[1]
Laid down	23 July 2021
Launched	2 April 2022
Sponsored by	Christina Calhoun Zubowicz
Christened	4 June 2022
Commissioned	20 April 2024
Homeport	North Charleston, South Carolina
Identification	Pennant number: WMSL-759
Motto	"Never Give Up"[2]
Status	in active service
Badge
General characteristics
Class & type	Legend-class cutter
Displacement	4,500 long tons (4,600 t)
Length	418 ft (127 m)
Beam	54 ft (16 m)
Draft	22.5 ft (6.9 m)
Propulsion	Combined diesel and gas
Speed	28 knots (52 km/h; 32 mph)
Range	12,000 nmi (22,000 km; 14,000 mi)
Endurance	60 to 90-day patrol cycles
Complement	120
Sensors & processing systems	AN/SPS-75 air search radar SPQ-9B fire control radar AN/SPS-79 surface search radar
Electronic warfare & decoys	AN/SLQ-32 electronic warfare system 2 x Mk-36 SRBOC/ 2 x Mk-53 NULKA countermeasures chaff/rapid decoy launcher
Armament	1 x Mk-110 57 mm Naval Gun System (variant of the Bofors 57 mm gun) 1 × 20 mm Block 1B Phalanx close-in weapons system 4 × .50 caliber machine guns 2 × M240B 7.62 mm machine guns
Armor	Ballistic protection for main gun
Aircraft carried	2 x MH-65C Dolphin MCH, or 1 x MH-65C Dolphin MCH and 2 x sUAS[3]

Development and design

Main article: Legend-class cutter

All of Legend-class cutters were constructed by Huntington Ingalls Industries and were part of the Integrated Deepwater System Program.^[5] They are of the high endurance cutter roles with additional upgrades to make it more of an asset to the Department of Defense during declared national emergency contingencies.^[6] The cutters are armed mainly to take on lightly-armed hostiles in low-threat environments.

Construction and career

Calhoun and her sister ship Friedman were ordered on 21 December 2018. On 12 November 2019, 100 tons of her steel had been cut.^[7] As of July 2021, she was more than halfway through her construction schedule. After the planned ceremony was delayed in 2020, her keel was formally authenticated on 23 July 2021.^[8][9] Calhoun was launched on 2 April 2022 and christened on 4 June 2022.^[10][11] Ingalls Shipbuilding announced on August 2, 2023 that Calhoun completed its acceptance sea trials.^[12] The Calhoun was delivered to Coast Guard Base Charleston and commissioned on April 20, 2024. ^[13]