As Northern Command Stands Up, 'National Fleet' Could Expand

Inside The Navy | July 1, 2002 | Randy Woods

[Stand Watch Listen]

With the establishment of U.S. Northern Command, it is likely the Navy and Coast Guard will continue to expand their National Fleet agreement to cover sharing of intelligence, small boats and other resources, according to the Coast Guard's program executive officer of its Deepwater program.

"I don't think there's any question that the Northern Command has the responsibility in terms of coordinating and attending to homeland defense requirements," Rear Adm. Patrick Stillman said last week. "In that construct, I think it's reasonable to assume that the Coast Guard and the Navy will continue to expand their 'National Fleet' agreement, and by that I mean we recognize that we have the responsibility to be frugal and use the taxpayers' dollar in the most effective and efficient [way] possible.

"We have committed to be interoperable, non-redundant and leverage where opportunities present that leverage working together in logistics as well as shared access," he added. "We recognize, as we both mature our acquisitions, that it is imperative to share information as well as opportunities and we intend to do so."

Stillman spoke to reporters last week after his service awarded its $17 billion Deepwater contract to a Lockheed Martin-Northrop Grumman team, called Integrated Coast Guard Systems (ICGS), to modernize the service's ships, aircraft and command and control systems. His particular comments regarding the National Fleet agreement came in response to questions about the strategic impact Deepwater might have on the Navy in light of the new Northern Command.

Numerous naval officials have observed -- publicly and privately -- that Northern Command will require the Navy to play a larger role in waters close to home. Such a role would likely necessitate closer communications with the Coast Guard, which is a primary goal of the National Fleet agreement.

The Pentagon unveiled its plan for a Unified Command Plan in April primarily to shift homeland defense responsibilities to the new Northern Command, which will stand up Oct. 1. Consequently, Joint Forces Command, which has responsibility for the North Atlantic, will instead concentrate on joint training and doctrine; U.S. Space Command and U.S. Strategic Command will merge; Russia will fall under U.S. European Command's area of responsibility; and U.S. Pacific Command will cover Antarctica.

Even before publication of these plans for a new command structure, the Navy and Coast Guard were expected to expand the 1998 National Fleet agreement that aligned the services more closely for planning, training and procurement purposes (Inside the Navy, Oct. 8, 2001, p1).

In April, ITN reported on a draft version of an updated National Fleet agreement that the Navy and Coast Guard were preparing to sign (ITN, April 8, 2002). The draft placed a new emphasis on force protection missions and fighting weapons of mass destruction. Rather than focusing only on the collaboration of Coast Guard cutters and Navy surface ships, the new memo talked about a full range of capabilities, including ships, boats, aircraft and submarines.

At press time (June 28), a Navy spokeswoman did not know if an updated National Fleet agreement had been signed. Neither service has publicly announced a deadline for the expansion.

"The National Fleet has two main attributes," according to the 1998 agreement. "First, the fleet is comprised of surface combatants and major cutters that are affordable, adaptable, interoperable, and with complementary capabilities. Second, whenever appropriate, the fleet is designed around common equipment and systems, and includes coordinated operational planning, training and logistics."

The 1998 National Fleet agreement speaks not only to the Navy and Coast Guard's shared maritime heritage but also to the need to improve coordination related to training, information sharing and technology. The Deepwater program is designed to significantly enhance the service's technology, making an expansion of the agreement even more relevant.

"I would state unequivocally that the U.S. Navy is absolutely critical to the success of the Coast Guard, and I would hope that a naval officer would be humble enough to say the same things about our contributions," said the admiral. "So I am very optimistic that Deepwater is absolutely a force multiplier for the U.S. Navy and the naval needs of this nation -- and that's large 'N,' which means Navy and Coast Guard together."

-- Randy Woods