Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 2:18:09-2:19:00

Why the LCS is not America's offshore patrol vessel

The US Coast Guard performs the constabulary work that leads many other navies to buy OPVs, so the Littoral Combat Ship belongs to a different combat requirement.

Littoral Combat ShipMaritime SecurityOffshore Patrol VesselsUS Coast GuardUS Navy
Watch at this timeFull video guide
Question

Should the Littoral Combat Ship be understood as the US Navy's offshore patrol vessel?

Short answer

No; the US Coast Guard covers the OPV-style mission, while LCS was intended as a Navy combatant for different tasks.

Notes

American offshore-patrol duties are assigned to the Coast Guard in this comparison. That division of responsibilities changes what the US Navy needs to procure for itself. Another navy's OPV can therefore represent work handled by a separate American service. This institutional difference is the reason given for rejecting a straightforward LCS-to-OPV comparison.