In a rare display, the U.S. Coast Guard has released photos showing every crewed aircraft currently within its inventory lined up together. The images were captured on June 14 at Air Station Elizabeth City in North Carolina. They provide a great visual companion between the types and underscore the diversity of airframes within the USCG’s fleet.
“In an… impressive gathering, every airframe in the U.S. Coast Guard fleet converged at one location,” the Department of Defense notes. “This remarkable photo opportunity was made possible during the Long Range Command and Control Aircraft (LRCCA) visit to AIRSTA Elizabeth City, NC. Pictured: HC-130J, C-27J, HC-144, C-37B, MH-60T, MH-65E.”
In the images above, the eye is drawn to the short-range Eurocopter MH-65E Dolphin and the larger, medium-range Sikorsky MH-60T Jayhawk, which the USCG relies on primarily for search and rescue and security maritime enforcement. The Coast Guard operates 146 helicopters out of a total fleet of almost 200 fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft, as of December 2023. Short-range MH-65D/Es account for around two-thirds of the entire USCG helicopter fleet.
However, the USCG also uses a smaller number of fixed-wing aircraft for various purposes.
Lockheed Martin’s HC-130J Hercules is used for air transport, long-range maritime patrol, and search and rescue missions, among others. The service has 19 as of December 2023.
The Alenia C-27J Spartan, of which there are 14, is used for medium-range surveillance, transport, and search and rescue, alongside Ocean Sentry’s HC-144A/B aircraft, which number 18 in the Coastie’s inventory. Again, those figures are accurate as of late last year.
The service’s C-37A and C-37B long-range command and control aircraft (LRCCA) are reserved primarily for VIP transport, often carting around Coast Guard and Homeland Security brass, but they can also support other transport missions and contingency operations as needed.
While Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps aircraft tend to get a lot of attention for photo ops, it’s no doubt nice to see all the Coast Guard’s aircraft types lined up for a single ‘family’ photo.
Contact the author: oliver@thewarzone.com