The Sentinel class Cutter, previously known as the Fast Response Cutter, is part of the United States Coast Guard

United States Coast Guard

The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...

's Deepwater

Integrated Deepwater System Program

The Integrated Deepwater System Program is the 25-year program to replace all or much of the United States Coast Guard's equipment, including aircraft, ships, and logistics and command and control systems...

 program.
At 46.8 metres (153.5 ft) it is similar to, but larger than the 123-foot extended Island Class Cutters, like the USCGC Matagorda

USCGC Matagorda

USCGC Matagorda is a United States Coast Guard Island-class patrol boat.Matagorda was built by Bollinger Machine Shop and Shipyard at Lockport, Louisiana, and was commissioned on 24 April 1986....

. 24 to 58 vessels are to be by the Louisiana

Louisiana

Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

 based firm Bollinger shipyards

Bollinger Shipyards

Bollinger Shipyards is an American constructor of ships, workboats and patrol vessels.The firm was founded in 1946.Its thirteen shipyards and forty drydocks are located in Louisiana and Texas....

, using a design from the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

-based Damen Group

Damen Group

Damen is a Dutch shipbuilding company which was founded in 1927 by Jan and Marinus Damen in a self-built workshop. In 1954 their 200th ship was delivered.-History:...

, with the Sentinel design based on the company's Stan 4708 patrol vessel.

Planning and acquisition

On March 14 2007, Commandant Thad Allen announced that they had withdrawn from a contract for the construction of the vessels, but had not entirely cancelled the program.
The new program would focus more on "off-the-shelf

Commercial off-the-shelf

In the United States, Commercially available Off-The-Shelf is a Federal Acquisition Regulation term defining a nondevelopmental item of supply that is both commercial and sold in substantial quantities in the commercial marketplace, and that can be procured or utilized under government contract...

" technology.
On September 26 2008, Bollinger Shipyards

Bollinger Shipyards

Bollinger Shipyards is an American constructor of ships, workboats and patrol vessels.The firm was founded in 1946.Its thirteen shipyards and forty drydocks are located in Louisiana and Texas....

 was awarded US$88 million to build a prototype.
The cutter will be the first of a series of 24-34 43 metres (141.1 ft) cutters built to a design largely based on the Stan 4708 patrol vessel

Damen Stan patrol vessel 4708

The Damen Group shipbuilders, based in the Netherlands, has managed the manufacture of Damen Stan 4207 patrol vessel 4708 for South Africa and the United States....

s from the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 firm the Damen Group

Damen Group

Damen is a Dutch shipbuilding company which was founded in 1927 by Jan and Marinus Damen in a self-built workshop. In 1954 their 200th ship was delivered.-History:...

.
The South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

n government employs similar vessels

Lillian Ngoyi-class environmental inshore patrol vessels

South Africa operates three Lillian Ngoyi class environmental patrol vessels,based on the Damen Stan 4708 design.The vessels are the Ruth First, Lillian Ngoyi and Victoria Mxenge.The vessels were constructed in South Africa by Farocean Marine....

 for environmental and fishery patrol.
The first cutter will be named USCGC Bernard C. Webber, and all future Sentinel Class will be named after enlisted Coast Guard heroes. Bernard C. Webber will be stationed in Miami. The Bernard C. Webber was launched on Thursday, April 21, 2011, and is expected to be commissioned some time later in the year.

Design

The vessels will be armed with a remote-control 25 mm Bushmaster autocannon and four crew-served M2HB .50-caliber machine guns. They will have a bow thruster

Bow thruster

A bow thruster is a transversal propulsion device built into, or mounted to, the bow of a ship or boat to make it more maneuverable. Bow thrusters make docking easier, since they allow the captain to turn the vessel to port or starboard without using the main propulsion mechanism which requires...

 for maneuvering in crowded anchorages and channels. They will have small underwater fins, for coping with the rolling and pitching caused by large waves. They will have a stern launching ramp, like the Marine Protector class and the eight failed expanded Island Class cutters. They will be manned by a crew of 22. Like the Marine Protector class, and the cancelled extended Island class cutters, the Fast Response Cutter would deploy the Short Range Prosecutor Rigid-hulled inflatable for rescues and interceptions. According to Marine Log, modifications to the Coast Guard vessels from the Stan 4708 design include an increase in speed from 23 to 28 kn (12.5 to 15.2 ), fixed pitch rather than variable pitch propellers, stern launch capability, and watertight bulkheads.

Ships

On October 27, the Coast Guard released the names of the first 14 Coast Guard enlisted heroes for whom the Sentinel-class FRCs will be named.

Name	Number	Builder	Launched	Commissioned	Home port	Status
Bernard C. Webber	WPC 1101	Bollinger Shipyards Bollinger Shipyards Bollinger Shipyards is an American constructor of ships, workboats and patrol vessels.The firm was founded in 1946.Its thirteen shipyards and forty drydocks are located in Louisiana and Texas....	April 21, 2011		Miami, FL	Under construction, launched
Richard Etheridge	WPC 1102	Bollinger Shipyards Bollinger Shipyards Bollinger Shipyards is an American constructor of ships, workboats and patrol vessels.The firm was founded in 1946.Its thirteen shipyards and forty drydocks are located in Louisiana and Texas....	August 19, 2011		Miami, FL	Under construction, launched
William Flores	WPC 1103	Bollinger Shipyards Bollinger Shipyards Bollinger Shipyards is an American constructor of ships, workboats and patrol vessels.The firm was founded in 1946.Its thirteen shipyards and forty drydocks are located in Louisiana and Texas....	2011-11-10			Under construction
Robert Yered		Bollinger Shipyards Bollinger Shipyards Bollinger Shipyards is an American constructor of ships, workboats and patrol vessels.The firm was founded in 1946.Its thirteen shipyards and forty drydocks are located in Louisiana and Texas....				Under construction
Margaret Norvell
Paul Clark
Charles David
Charles Sexton
Kathleen Moore
Joseph Napier,
William Trump
Isaac Mayo
Richard Dixon
Heriberto Hernandez