Admiral Thad Allen
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Profile: ADMIRAL THAD ALLEN Commandant United States Coast Guard By Richard H. Wagner he Commandant of the US Coast assignments include Captain of the Port / Guard is the highest ranking Group Long Island Sound, Connecticut; T member of the US Coast Guard. Group Atlantic City, New Jersey and He is the only four-star Admiral of the LORAN Station Lampang, Thailand. Coast Guard, and is appointed for a four Among his flag assignments, year term by the President of the United Admiral Allen commanded the Seventh States upon confirmation of the United Coast Guard District where he directed States Senate. On 25 May 2006, Coast Guard operations in South Admiral Thad Allen was named the 23rd Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Commandant of the Coast Guard. “I can throughout the Caribbean. served as think of no greater honor and no better Commander, Coast Guard Atlantic Area, way to continue serving our Nation than Fifth Coast Guard District, and U.S. through our Coast Guard, a service Maritime Defense Zone Atlantic in whose embedded responsibilities impact Portsmouth, Va., where he was the every American.” operational commander for all Coast “I have spent my entire life in the Guard activities in an area of United States Coast Guard. I was born responsibility spanning five Coast Guard while my father an enlisted father, a Districts, encompassing more than 14 Seaman on the deck force, was million square miles and involving underway on a Coast Guard cutter. In 26,000 military and civilian employees, 1967, I traded my dependent’s ID for an and 27,900 Auxiliarists. Admiral Allen active duty card when I entered the led the Coast Guard’s Atlantic Area United States Coast Guard Academy. I forces in response to the terrorist attacks have seen life from the junior enlisted of September 11, 2001. ranks as a dependent, and I have been In May 2006, Admiral Allen was lucky enough to advance through the appointed the Coast Guard Chief of Staff organization as an active duty officer. and Commanding Officer, Coast Guard My Coast Guard service has ingrained in Headquarters, in Washington, D.C.. me an abiding respect for its people, During this period, he also served as the their work, and the value this work Chairman of the Department of provides to the Nation,” Allen said Homeland Security’s Joint Requirements during his confirmation hearing. Council from 2003 to 2006. In Indeed, Admiral Allen has had September 2005, Admiral Allen was an impressive and varied Coast Guard designated the Principal Federal Official career. He has served aboard three for Hurricane Katrina response and Coast Guard cutters, the recovery operations in Louisiana, ANDROSCOGGIN, GALLATIN and Mississippi and Alabama. He CITRUS, which he commanded His additionally served as Principal Federal coastal command operational Official for Hurricane Rita response and Allen explains. “This consolidation will recovery activities in Louisiana. provide a single point of accountability Admiral Allen assumed for operations. It will also unify command of the Coast Guard during one resource allocation and enable risk based of its most critical and transformational decision making tools to focus on Coast times. Following the attacks of Guard capabilities and competencies to September 11, 2001, the demands on the reduce risk and mitigate threats.” Coast Guard increased substantially. To help deal with the increase in Congress passed the Maritime the Coast Guard’s responsibilities, the Transportation Security Act and the force has grown. Since 2001, Coast International Maritime Organization Guard strength has risen 15 percent, an promulgated the International Ship and increase of 6,200 uniformed and civilian Port Security Code setting forth new personnel. At his confirmation hearing, security requirements to be enforced by Admiral Allen stated: “The challenge I the Coast Guard. In addition, Coast accept is to continue to provide Coast Guard personnel and assets found Guard personnel, the skills, knowledge themselves thousands of miles from and competencies needed to effectively home, patrolling off Iraq and providing contribute to mission execution and at law enforcement capability on Navy the same time further individual growth, ships interdicting terrorist and drug career development, and life-long traffic off of Africa and in the Persian learning.” Gulf. “We are nothing without our At the same time, the Coast people and our people cannot be Guard was transferred from the effective without the right tools,” Department of Transportation to the Admiral Allen has often said. However, Department of Homeland Security, the service faces an asset crisis. The becoming the largest organization within Coast Guard operates more than 250 that agency. This transfer was ships in addition to some 1,400 small accompanied by the development of new boats but it is one of the oldest fleets in working relationships with other federal the world. The average age of a Coast agencies both inside and outside of the Guard cutter is more than 35 years. In Department. Also, the Coast Guard has recent testimony before Congress, re-thought and modified its internal Admiral Allen pointed out: “Some of our structure. cutters are old enough to be eligible for “One of the most important Social Security!” Not only is much of organizational changes the Coast Guard the fleet outdated and not suited for has pursued in its three-tiered prevention today’s demands but there is increasing and response structure has been the downtime and maintenance costs for creation of Sectors,” Admiral Allen has these obsolete ships and aircraft. noted. “First envisioned in 2004, the To meet this crisis, the Coast Sector concept was adopted to Guard embarked in 1993 on a 25-year consolidate the Coast Guard’s modernization program called Project operational resources and missions under Deepwater - - “the centerpiece of the a single command umbrella for a Coast Guard’s future capability in nearly particular portion of the United States,” all of our maritime missions.” Admiral 2 Copyright 2007: Richard H. Wagner All rights reserved. Allen has explained: “We determined The program has, however, that it would be most cost effective and encountered a number of significant efficient to acquire a wholly integrated challenges. The Coast Guard had system of ships, aircraft, sensors, and planned to lengthen 49 110-foot patrol communications systems, or as it is boats to 123 feet in an effort to make commonly called a ‘system of systems.’ those ships suffice until new cutters can The idea is based on the concept that the be deployed. However, the first eight whole is greater than the sum of its parts; boast that were converted developed hull all elements combine to generate greater problems and Admiral Allen was forced capabilities across the entire system. to cancel the project. One of the ways Given that, our goal is not to replace the Coast Guard had considered for ships, aircraft, and senors with more replacing the planned 123 foot boats was ships, aircraft and senors, but with the to bring forward the schedule for functional capabilities required to safely delivery of the Fast Response Cutter achieve mission success.” (“FRC”). But, the design for the FRC The Deepwater program has called for the hull to be built of a already resulted in improvements to the composite material and testing revealed Coast Guard’s asset base. During the that the material was inadequate for the last year, the first of the new Maritime job, significantly setting back that Patrol Aircraft, the HC-144A, was program. Along the same lines, testing delivered, a new surface ship training revealed that the NSC would not have center was opened, command, control, the lifespan that that program called for and senor upgrades were made to all 39 because of fatigue brought on by the medium and high endurance cutters, and stresses that result from constant the first of the new National Security patrolling in all types of weather. Cutters (“NSC”) was launched and Finally, in order to have the capabilities christened. The service’s small and needed to meet the increased demands medium range helicopters “are being placed upon the Coast Guard after modernized and converted to serve as September 11, 2001, the estimated cost more capable multimission platforms.” of Deepwater has grown from $17 “Deepwater’s re-engining and billion to $24 billion over 25 years. upgrading of our legacy fleet of 95 HH- The aforementioned problems 65 helicopters offers a good example of with Deepwater had their genesis before how the Deepwater Program will benefit Admiral Allen took command. Coast Guard execution in all of our However, he is the one that has had to missions. At the end of May [2007], 37 deal with the criticism in the media and of the more powerful HH-65C elsewhere, revamp the Coast Guard’s helicopters had been re-engined and acquisition program, and make the returned to service with our operating choices needed to compensate for these forces. The operational benefits were setbacks. “We are on the path to change apparent during our response to and we will not stop until the Coast Hurricane Katrina last year. Three Guard has the tools it needs to protect upgraded HH-65C helicopters flew 85 America. I am the Commandant of the sorties to save 305 lives.” Coast Guard. I am responsible, I will do this right.” 3 Copyright 2007: Richard H. Wagner All rights reserved. .