Former US Coast Guard Ship, P-627 which was donated to the Sri Lanka Navy by the U.S. government arrived at Colombo Port yesterday morning. US Ambassador Julie Chung, State Defence Minister Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon, Defence Ministry officials and Service Chiefs were present. Pictures by Sulochana Gamage
The Offshore Patrol Vessel P 627, given to the Sri Lanka Navy from the United States (U.S.) Coast Guard, arrived at the Port of Colombo yesterday. The ship began her home-bound journey from the Port of Seattle on September 3, 2022 and arrived in Colombo after about 10,656 nautical miles (19,734 km) of sea passage.
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) formally took the delivery of EX-United States Coast Guard Cutter, USCGC Douglas Munro, provided by the United States (U.S.) Coast Guard to SLN, at the U.S. Coast Guard Base
Seattle of Washington in the United States on 26th October 2021. Following the acquisition, she was designated as P 627, attached to SLN fleet.
Navy Commander Vice Admiral Nishantha Ulugetenne, State Defence Minister,Premitha Bandara Tennakoon, U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Julie Chung, Defence Secretary, General Kamal Gunaratne (Retd), Chief of Defence Staff, General Shavendra Silva, Army Commander, Lieutenant General Vikum Liyanage, Air Force Commander, Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana were present to welcome the ship.The U.S. Coast Guard has previously provided two ships - SLNS ‘Samudura’ (P 621) in 2005 and SLNS ‘Gajabahu’( P 626) in 2018 to SLN and they are playing a prominent role, keeping the island waters safe and secure. As an extension of partnership ties that bring value to each other’s service, Ex-USCGC Douglas Munro was transferred as the third ship to be handed to SLN.
P 627, the second ‘Hamilton Class High Endurance Cutter’, received by SLN, measures 115m in length and capable of reaching the maximum speed of 29 knots with 14,000 nautical miles of endurance at cruising speed. Further, she has been designed for 187 crew members and is equipped with modern weapons and machinery that suit SLN’s operational requirements. During her stint with the U.S. Coast Guard the ship has rendered an exceptional service by curbing illegal fishing, illegal immigration and seizure of a large quantity of narcotics in U.S. waters.
Upon taking over of the ship, the initial crew of about 130 naval personnel under the supervision of the Commanding Officer designate of P 627, underwent training and engaged in acquisition formalities, maintenance, scheduled repairs and installations to suit the operational needs of the Sri Lanka Navy, for about 10 months. Soon after training and modernization work, P 627 began her home-bound journey on 03rd September 2022.
Thus, the ship’s two-month-long home journey from the Port of Seattle, across the Pacific and Indian oceans, came to an end with her arrival at the Port of Colombo on 02nd November 2022. The journey is recorded as the longest-ever sea voyage a naval vessel has ever sailed in SLN history. During her long sea passage from Seattle to Colombo, the ship made port calls at Honolulu in Hawaii, Apra in Guam, United States, Manila in Philippine and Changi Naval Harbour in Singapore for replenishment and services.
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