| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USCGCPoint Garnet (WPB-82310) |
| Owner | United States Coast Guard |
| Builder | Coast Guard Yard, Curtis Bay, Maryland |
| Commissioned | 15 March 1961 |
| Decommissioned | 16 May 1969 |
| Honors and awards |
|
| Fate | Transferred toRepublic of Vietnam Navy as RVNSLê Văn Ngà (HQ-701), 16 May 1969[2] |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Patrol Boat (WPB) |
| Displacement | 60 tons |
| Length | 82 ft 10 in (25.25 m) |
| Beam | 17 ft 7 in (5.36 m) max |
| Draft | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Propulsion | 2 × 600 hp (447 kW)Cumminsdiesel engines |
| Speed | 16.8knots (31.1 km/h; 19.3 mph) |
| Range |
|
| Complement |
|
| Armament |
|
USCGCPoint Garnet (WPB-82310) was an 82-foot (25 m)Point class cutter constructed at theCoast Guard Yard atCurtis Bay, Maryland in 1961 for use as a law enforcement and search and rescue patrol boat. Since the Coast Guard policy in 1961 was not to namecutters under 100-foot (30 m) in length, it was designated asWPB-82310 when commissioned and acquired the namePoint Garnet in January 1964 when the Coast Guard started naming all cutters longer than 65-foot (20 m).[4][5]
Point Garnet was built to accommodate an 8-man crew.[6] She was powered by two 600 hp (447 kW) VT600Cummins diesel main drive engines and had two five-bladed 42 in (1.1 m) propellers. The main drive engines were later replaced by 800 hp (597 kW) VT800 Cummins engines. Water tank capacity was 1,550 U.S. gallons (5,900 L) and fuel tank capacity was 1,840 U.S. gallons (7,000 L) at 95% full.[4][6] Engine exhaust was ported through the transom rather than through a conventional stack and this permitted a 360 degree view from the bridge; a feature that was very useful in search and rescue work as well as a combat environment.[7]
The design specifications forPoint Garnet included a steel hull for durability and an aluminum superstructure and longitudinally framed construction was used to save weight. Ease of operation with a small crew size was possible because of the non-manned main drive engine spaces. Controls and alarms located on thebridge allowed one man operation of the cutter thus eliminating a live engineerwatch in the engine room.[7] Because of design, four men could operate the cutter; however, the need for resting watchstanders brought the crew size to eight men for normal domestic service.[7] Thescrews were designed for ease of replacement and could be changed without removing the cutter from the water. A clutch-in idle speed of three knots helped to conserve fuel on lengthy patrols and an eighteen knot maximum speed could get the cutter on scene quickly.[8] Air-conditioned interior spaces were a part of the original design for the Point class cutter. Interior access to the deckhouse was through awatertight door on thestarboard side aft of thedeckhouse. The deckhouse contained the cabin for the officer-in-charge and the executive petty officer.[8] The deckhouse also included a small arms locker,scuttlebutt, a small desk andhead. Access to the lower deck and engine room was down a ladder. At the bottom of the ladder was thegalley,mess and recreation deck. A watertight door at the front of the messbulkhead led to the main crew quarters which was ten feet long and included six bunks that could be stowed, three bunks on each side. Forward of the bunks was the crew's head complete with a compact sink, shower and commode.[8] Accommodations for a 13-man crew were installed for Vietnam service.[4][5][9][10]
After delivery in 1961,Point Garnet was assigned a homeport ofNorfolk, Virginia, where she served as a law enforcement and search and rescue patrol boat.[4]
At the request of theUnited States Navy, in April 1965, she was alerted for service inSouth Vietnam and assigned toCoast Guard Squadron One in support ofOperation Market Time along with 16 other Point class cutters.[11][12] While the crew completed overseas training and weapons qualifications atCoast Guard Island andCamp Parks, California,Point Garnet was loaded onto a merchant ship, and transported toSubic Bay,Philippines arriving in May 1965 where she was refitted for combat service.[4] Shipyard modifications included installation of new single-sideband radio equipment, additional floodlights, small arms lockers, bunks, additional sound-powered phone circuits, and the addition of 4M2 machine guns. The originalOerlikon 20 mm cannon was replaced with a combination over-under .50 caliber machine gun/81mm trigger fired mortar that had been developed by the Coast Guard for service in Vietnam.[3][4][13][14] For service in Vietnam, two officers were added to the crew complement to add seniority to the crew in the mission of interdicting vessels at sea.[15]
Point Garnet was assigned to Division 11 of Squadron One to be based atAn Thoi Naval Base on the southern tip ofPhú Quốc island along withUSCGC Point Banks,USCGC Point Clear,USCGC Point Comfort,USCGC Point Glover,USCGC Point Grey,USCGC Point Marone,USCGC Point Mast andUSCGC Point Young. After sea trials, the Division left Subic Bay for An Thoi on 17 July 1965 in the company ofUSS Floyd County, their temporary support ship. After almost two weeks at sea, they arrived at their new duty station on 1 August and began patrolling the waters in theGulf of Thailand near theCà Mau Peninsula.[16] Duty consisted of boarding Vietnamese junks to search for contraband weapons and ammunition and check the identification papers of persons on board. During September 1965,USS Krishna, a repair ship outfitted for the repair of WPB's relieved the USSFloyd County. Also during this time, the WPB's were directed to paint the hulls and superstructures formula 20 deck gray to cover the stateside white paint. This increased the effectiveness of night patrols.[17]
On 16 May 1969 at Saigon Navy Base,Point Garnet was the second Squadron One cutter that was turned over to theRepublic of Vietnam Navy as part of theVietnamization of the war effort and she was recommissioned as RVNSLê Văn Ngà (HQ-701).[2]
