USCGC Halibut

USCGC Halibut is a United States Coast Guard Marine Protector-class coastal patrol boat based in Marina del Rey, California.^[1] Her patrol area is the 300 miles (480 km) from Morro Bay to Dana Point, California, and several important offshore islands.

Halibut and a U.S. Coast Guard Eurocopter HH-65 Dolphin helicopter pay tribute over the site of the wreck of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter McCulloch in the Pacific Ocean off Point Conception, California, in October 2016.

History
United States
Name	USCGC Halibut
Namesake	Halibut
Builder	Bollinger Shipyards, Lockport, Louisiana
Commissioned	April 26, 2002
Homeport	Marina del Rey, California
Identification	MMSI number: 366999662
Status	in active service
General characteristics
Class and type	Marine Protector-class coastal patrol boat
Displacement	91 lt
Length	87 ft (27 m)
Beam	19 ft 5 in (5.92 m)
Draft	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Propulsion	2 x MTU diesels
Speed	25 kn (46 km/h; 29 mph)
Range	900 nmi (1,700 km)
Endurance	5 days
Complement	12
Armament	2 × .50 caliber M2 Browning machine guns

Like her sister ships, Halibut was built at the Bollinger Shipyards, in Lockport, Louisiana.^[2]

Commissioned on April 26, 2002, she replaced the Point-class cutter USCGC Point Bridge (WPB 82338). She was commissioned on 26 April 2002.

In the early morning of 2 December 2012, Halibut encountered a suspicious vessel and dispatched her pursuit boat to investigate.^[3][4][5][6] The crew of the pursuit boat hailed the vessel and attempted to board her for an inspection, upon which the suspicious vessel rammed Halibut′s boat. Senior Chief Petty Officer Terrell Horne, Halibut's executive petty officer, was credited with heroically pushing a colleague to safety at the cost of his own life.

In October 2016, Halibut joined the Coast Guard patrol boat USCGC Blacktip (WPB-87326) in supporting operations by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) personnel aboard the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary′s research vessel R/V Shearwater who used a VideoRay Mission Specialist remotely operated vehicle to find and identify the wreck of the Coast Guard cutter McCulloch, which sank in the Pacific Ocean 3 nautical miles (5.5 km) off Point Conception, California, on 13 June 1917 after colliding with the passenger steamer Governor.^[7]

References

1. "CGC HALIBUT (WPB 87340): Featured Photo". USCG. 2013-09-19. Archived from the original on 2014-08-12. Retrieved 2014-08-06. HALIBUT is under the operational command of Sector Los Angeles/Long Beach and is responsible for patrolling 300 miles of the southern California coast from Morro Bay to Dana Point, including the Channel Islands and Catalina Island.
2. "CGC HALIBUT (WPB 87340): HALIBUT HISTORY". USCG. Archived from the original on 2014-08-12. Retrieved 2014-08-06. HALIBUT replaced USCGC POINT BRIDGE (WPB 82338), an 82 foot patrol boat that had been stationed in Marina Del Rey since 1964.
3. Christopher Lagan (2014-07-30). "Coast Guard to name cutter for BMCS Terrell Horne III". Coast Guard Compass. Retrieved 2014-08-06. The Commandant personally informed the Horne family earlier today a fast response cutter will bear Terrell's name in honor of his sacrifice and faithful service in defense of his nation.
4. "Citation to accompany the award of the Goast Guard Meal (posthumously) to Terrell E. Horne, III, Senior Chief Boatswain's Mate, United States Coast Guard" (PDF). United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 2014-08-06.^{[dead link]}
5. Kevin Roderick (2014-02-05). "Mexican smugglers convicted in sea death of Coast Guard Chief Horne". LA Observed. Archived from the original on 2014-07-15. Retrieved 2014-08-06. Two Mexican nationals from Ensenada who were apprehended on a smuggling panga in December 2012 were convicted today in the death of Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Terrell Horne III.
6. Kate Mather (2014-02-15). "Mexican nationals convicted in 2012 death of Coast Guardsman". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2014-08-02. Retrieved 2014-08-06. Chief Petty Officer Terrell Horne III's death made him the first Coast Guardsman murdered in the line of duty since 1927, officials said. Horne, who spent 14 years with the Coast Guard, was posthumously promoted to the rank of senior chief petty officer.
7. sanctuaries.noaa.gov U.S. Coast Guard Cutter McCulloch Factsheet