location, condition and drift projections of spilled oil to the
Coast Guard-led U.S. Interagency Assessment Team.
On February 28th, Coalition offensive operations ceased
and, on April 11th, the United Nations declared a formal
ceasefire, ending the Gulf War. On April 21st, when coalition
naval forces entered Kuwait's Mina Ash Shuwaikh Harbor,
they selected a Coast Guard "Raider" TBSP from PSU 301 to
lead the way. This event symbolized how numerically small
Coast Guard forces played a vital role in DESERT STORM
military operations.
In the Persian Gulf War, the Coast Guard provided essential
support for naval and land-based military operations that the
U.S. Navy could not. The MSOs ensured a nearly 100 percent
ready rate of RRF vessels and LEDET personnel either led
or supported sixty percent of the 600 boardings. Nearly
1,000 Coast Guard reservists were called to active duty for
DESERT SHIELD and DESERT STORM and two-thirds of
them served in the first successful overseas deployment of
Coast Guard Port Security Units. Aviation units deployed in
theater mapped over 40,000 square miles of the Persian Gulf
while their aircraft maintained a readiness rate of nearly 100
percent.
In the Persian Gulf War, Coast Guard personnel proudly
served their country both at home and abroad and proved
once again the importance of Coast Guard missions in
overseas conflicts. These Coast Guard activities focused on,
but were not limited to, marine safety, vessel boarding, port
security and environmental protection operations. In all of
these missions, men and women of the Coast Guard Reserve
fulfilled their wartime missions and proved Semper Paratus,
"always ready."
�
Some of the 400 Coast g uard men and women who participated in the postwar victory celebration in Washington, d .C. (U.S. Coast g uard)
Coast g uardsmen from a law enforcement detachment boarding team
on board a t urkish freighter. (U.S. Coast g uard)
52 RESERVIST � Issue 3 • 2016