The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the United States military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission with jurisdiction in both domestic and international waters and a federal regulatory agency mission as part of its duties. It is the largest coast guard in the world, rivaling the capabilities and size of most navies.
The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary is the uniformed, non-military volunteer component of the United States Coast Guard. Congress established the unit on 23 June 1939, as the United States Coast Guard Reserve. On February 19, 1941, the entity was renamed the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary. The Auxiliary's purpose is to bolster all USCG undertakings both at sea and in the sky, with the exception of tasks necessitating "direct" law enforcement or military actions. As of 2022, the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary boasted around 21,000 members.
Naval Reserve Merchant Marine Insignia was a breast insignia of officers in the United States Merchant Marine who also served in the United States Navy or United States Navy Reserve. The insignia was replaced by the Strategic Sealift Officer Warfare Insignia (SSOWI) in June 2011, per OPNAVINST 1534.1D.
The Observer Badge is a military badge of the United States armed forces dating from the First World War. The badge was issued to co-pilots, navigators, and flight support personnel who had received a variation in the training required for the standard Pilot's Badge. The Observer Badge survived through the Second World War and into the 1950s, at which time the concept of an Observer Badge was phased out in favor of the modern Aircrew Badge and Navigator-Observer Badges. In addition to wings for Naval Aviators and Naval Flight Officers, the United States Navy still maintains an "Observer Badge" which is issued to flight-qualified mission specialists, such as a select number of meteorologists and intelligence officers in both the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. The U.S. Air Force awards its USAF Observer Badge, which is identical to the USAF Navigator Badge, to Air Force officers who have qualified as NASA Space Shuttle Mission Specialists, have flown an actual mission aboard the shuttle and/or the International Space Station and who are otherwise not previously aeronautically rated as an Air Force pilot or navigator.
Identification badges of the uniformed services of the United States are insignia worn by service members conducting special duties, many of which can be awarded as permanent decorations if those duties are performed successfully. There are a few identification badges that are awarded to all services, others are specific to a uniform service. The Office of the President and Vice President and department/service headquarters badges are permanent decorations for those who successfully serve in those assignments. Some of the service level identification badges can be permanent decorations and others are only worn by a service member while performing specific duties, such as the Military Police Badge.
John William Kime was an admiral of the United States Coast Guard who served as the 19th commandant from 1990 to 1994.
The cutterman insignia is a device awarded by the United States Coast Guard to represent service aboard a Coast Guard cutter. The pin is awarded on a temporary basis after six months of sea time, qualification in required watch stations, successful completion of an oral or written board, and receiving a recommendation from their unit's commanding officer. Temporary insignias may be worn while attached to a cutter, but must be removed upon permanently transferring to a non-afloat unit. The award becomes permanent after 5 years of cumulative sea time in the Coast Guard.
This article covers the organization of the United States Coast Guard.
United States Coast Guard officer rank insignia describes an officer's pay-grade. Rank is displayed on collar devices, shoulder boards, and on the sleeves of dress uniforms.
A Sector is a shore-based operational unit of the United States Coast Guard. Each Sector is responsible for the execution of all Coast Guard missions within its Area of Responsibility (AOR), with operational support from Coast Guard Cutters and Air Stations. Subordinate commands within a Sector typically include Stations and Aids-to-Navigation (ATON) Teams. Some Sector commands also have subordinate units such as Sector Field Offices and Marine Safety Units that are responsible for mission execution in parts of the Sector's AOR. There are 37 sectors within the Coast Guard.
The US employs divers in several branches of the armed forces, including the navy, army, marines, air force and coast guard.
The Deployable Specialized Forces (DSF) —formerly Deployable Operations Group— are part of the United States Coast Guard that provide highly equipped, trained and organized deployable specialized forces, to the Coast Guard, United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), United States Department of Defense (DoD) and inter-agency operational and tactical commanders. The command was formerly headquartered in Arlington, Virginia where it was established on 20 July 2007, and was commanded by a captain. It was decommissioned by the Commandant of the Coast Guard, Admiral Robert Papp on 1 October 2013, with units previously assigned to the DOG being split between Coast Guard Pacific and Atlantic Area commands. The units were subsequently reorganized under Deployable Specialized Forces (DSF).
Rear Admiral Larry L. Hereth was the Commander of the Fifth Coast Guard District of the United States Coast Guard. He has also acted as director of port security and Assistant Commandant for Marine Safety, Security and Environmental Protection. He retired in 2007, after 34 years of service.
Paul Frederick Zukunft is a retired admiral of the United States Coast Guard who served as the 25th commandant. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the Commandant, with the rank of admiral, in May 2014 and relieved Robert J. Papp Jr. as commandant on 30 May 2014. Prior to his selection as Commandant, he served as Commander, Coast Guard Pacific Area. In this position, Zukunft was the operational commander for all U.S. Coast Guard missions within the half of the world that ranges from the Rocky Mountains to the waters off the East Coast of Africa. He concurrently served as Commander, Defense Force West and provided U.S. Coast Guard mission support to the U.S. Department of Defense and Combatant Commanders.
District 13 is a United States Coast Guard district, based at the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building, in Seattle, Washington. It covers the Pacific Northwest and its Area of Responsibility encompasses four states; Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. District 13 is divided into three Sectors – Puget Sound, Columbia River and North Bend. The District has more than 3,000 active duty and reserve members, civilian employees, and auxiliaries and operates twenty-one cutters, 132 boats and eleven aircraft.
Clyde Thomas Lusk, Jr. was a vice admiral in the United States Coast Guard who served as Vice Commandant from 1988 to 1990. He had been commander of the Commander of the Eighth Coast Guard District, Chief of Operations of the Eighth Coast Guard District, Commanding Officer of the Merchant Marine Inspection Office, and Chief of the Office of Merchant Marine Safety at Coast Guard Headquarters. He is an alumnus of the United States Coast Guard Academy (1954) and Industrial College of the Armed Forces.
The Auxiliary University Programs (AUP) is a United States Coast Guard Auxiliary-managed initiative established in 2007. Today AUP now has nearly 200 members in 11 units representing over 30 colleges and universities across the United States. The Auxiliary University Program (AUP) prepares undergraduate and graduate students for future public service inside and outside of the Coast Guard. AUP provides the opportunity to attend college while learning to gain boating education, to learn about homeland security, and to gain operational and leadership experience. AUP has a positive track record of getting a large number of its graduates into Coast Guard Officer Candidate School. Members graduating AUP and choosing to enlist are automatically promotable to E-3 pay grade/rank when joining.
The history of the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary began in 1939. From its formation, the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary has been supporting the United States Coast Guard. The Auxiliary works within the Coast Guard in carrying out its noncombatant and non-law enforcement missions.
The Response Operations Ashore Insignia is awarded to enlisted members and officers of the United States Coast Guard and United States Coast Guard Reserve and Coast Guard civilian employees to recognize professional accomplishment in the Response Operations Ashore community. COMDTINST 1200.4 contains the requirements for earning the Response Operations Ashore Insignia and process for requesting award of the Insignia. The Response Operations Ashore Insignia will be retroactively awarded to any member who served in the Response Operations Ashore community and meets the requirements outlined in COMDTINST 1200.4. As of March 26, 2024, this insignia is still not available for purchase.
