{"id":8079,"date":"2025-04-21T10:02:08","date_gmt":"2025-04-21T10:02:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/?p=8079"},"modified":"2025-04-21T10:02:08","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T10:02:08","slug":"refitting-coast-guard-motor-lifeboats-to-continue-saving-lives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/?p=8079","title":{"rendered":"Refitting Coast Guard Motor Lifeboats to Continue Saving Lives"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>    Refitting Coast Guard Motor Lifeboats to Continue Saving Lives<br \/>\n \t<BR><br \/>\n<BR><\/BR><br \/>\n    <!-- no image --><br \/>\n \t<BR><br \/>\n<BR><\/BR><\/p>\n<div>\n<section class=\"hydra-container\">\n<div class=\"hydra-canvas\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-1-1024x768.jpg?resize=800%2C600&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"hydra-image disable-lazyload\" alt=\"Coast Guard 47-foot Motor Lifeboat running through heavy seas\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1400px) 100vw, 1400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-1-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-1-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-1-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-1-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-1.jpg 2000w\">                <\/div><figcaption class=\"caption margin_top_xs full border_1 hydra-figcaption\">\n                <span class=\"hydra-image-caption\">Crews from US Coast Guard \u00adStation Barnegat Light train in surf aboard newly refit 47-foot Motor Lifeboats.<\/span><br \/>\n                <span class=\"article_image_credit italic margin_right_xs\">Scott Nevins<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/section>\n<p><iframe id=\"wxuzj5efbz\" src=\"https:\/\/boatingmag.dragonforms.com\/wxuzj5efbz\" scrolling=\"no\" style=\"width:100%;height:165px;border:none;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>While <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/how-to\/us-coast-guard-mh-65-dolphin-helicopters\/\">Coast Guard air crews<\/a> often grab headlines, sometimes flying hundreds of miles offshore into unimaginable conditions to save mariners in peril, boaters in trouble closer to the coast are more likely to have a Coast Guard vessel come alongside. That\u2019s true even in extremely gnarly conditions. Crews aboard the 47-foot Motor Lifeboat, the Coast Guard\u2019s primary nearshore fast-response rescue platform, will head into 50-knot winds through 30-foot seas and traverse inlets with 20-foot breaking surf.<\/p>\n<p>These venerable boats first went into service in the late 1990s, replacing the 44 MLB. As they exceed their anticipated service life, the Coast Guard has turned to Birdon, a global maritime and defense contractor, to complete a fleetwide $191 million Service Life Extension Program. <em>Boating<\/em> went behind the scenes to see firsthand how these revitalized vessels give their Coast Guard crews improved tools for saving lives.<\/p>\n<section class=\"hydra-container\">\n<div class=\"hydra-canvas\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-2-1024x768.jpg?resize=800%2C600&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"hydra-image\" alt=\"Refitting Coast Guard Motor Lifeboats\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1400px) 100vw, 1400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-2-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-2-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-2-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-2-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-2.jpg 2000w\">                <\/div><figcaption class=\"caption margin_top_xs full border_1 hydra-figcaption\">\n                <span class=\"hydra-image-caption\">In Birdon\u2019s new building on the Connecticut River, workers refit about eight boats at once, and each boat takes around eight months to complete.<\/span><br \/>\n                <span class=\"article_image_credit italic margin_right_xs\">Capt. Vincent Daniello<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/section>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Rescue Machines<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cWhen you\u2019re inbound with a boat in tow, against an ebb current, in 24-foot seas, it shows that these boats are highly capable of their mission,\u201d says Chief Petty Officer Matthew Whitlow, who has served aboard a 47 Motor Lifeboat since 2014. That includes four years in the notorious Columbia River entrance as an instructor at National Motor Lifeboat School at Cape Disappointment, Washington. \u201cI\u2019ve never doubted that this boat would take care of us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>What gives him that confidence? The 47 MLB is designed to capsize on its side or pitchpole end-over-end, even rolling all the way through 360 degrees, then return upright within 12 seconds and continue on its mission. I\u2019ve quipped, in particularly rough seas, about being in Mother Ocean\u2019s washing machine, but these men and women are ready, able and fully equipped for spin cycle.<\/p>\n<p>Once on-scene, Coast Guard crews deploy dewatering pumps, damage control kits and firefighting capabilities. Often, just towing a disabled boat stabilizes or remedies perilous situations. The 47 MLB can stay offshore for many hours, follow stricken vessels back to port, and carry as many as 34 survivors and crew\u2014all far surpassing rescue-\u00adhelicopter \u00adlimits.<\/p>\n<section class=\"hydra-container\">\n<div class=\"hydra-canvas\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-5-1024x768.jpg?resize=800%2C600&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"hydra-image\" alt=\"Birdon warehouse with parts for 47 MLB\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1400px) 100vw, 1400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-5-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-5-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-5-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-5-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-5.jpg 2000w\">                <\/div><figcaption class=\"caption margin_top_xs full border_1 hydra-figcaption\">\n                <span class=\"hydra-image-caption\">Birdon\u2019s warehouse stores 4,000 items, where they\u2019re ready for the next boat, including new, taller stainless-steel propeller struts, Aquamet 22 shafts, and self-closing emergency fuel-shutoff valves.<\/span><br \/>\n                <span class=\"article_image_credit italic margin_right_xs\">Capt. Vincent Daniello<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/section>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Project Scope<\/h2>\n<p>At Birdon\u2019s Portland, Connecticut, facility, six indoor service bays accommodate technicians installing new diesels, upgrading electronics, reconfiguring the open bridge and engine room, and welding in entire sections of aluminum. In other buildings, additional boats are disassembled and media-blasted inside and out to bare aluminum. Since the project began in 2019, the company has completed 27 boats. Two facilities, in Connecticut and also Bellingham, Washington, will refit about 20 boats in 2025, and Birdon is on track and within budget toward a final fleet of 107 refit 47 MLBs by 2029. (Another 10 boats in the Coast Guard\u2019s current 117-boat fleet may be scrapped or refit in the end.)<\/p>\n<p>What those metrics don\u2019t reflect, though, is Birdon\u2019s focus on the mission of these boats\u2014protecting Coast Guard crews while rescuing boaters already in serious peril. That starts with ensuring rollover survivability even when two new Cummins diesel engines offer 880 pounds less ballast than the Detroit Diesels they replace. Steel ballast low in the engine room and forward compartment compensates for that change, and completed boats are weighed, both upright and inclined through 14 degrees in a hydraulic cradle, to verify their stability. Each of the 4,000 parts replaced, as well as the\u00a0few dozen retained items, are all inspected at least three times: before, during and after installation. Sea trials by both Birdon and the Coast Guard replicate operating parameters right down to crew weight simulated with water tanks belted into the seats.<\/p>\n<section class=\"hydra-container\">\n<div class=\"hydra-canvas\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-3-1024x768.jpg?resize=800%2C600&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"hydra-image\" alt=\"Cummins diesel on Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1400px) 100vw, 1400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-3-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-3-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-3-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-3-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-3.jpg 2000w\">                <\/div><figcaption class=\"caption margin_top_xs full border_1 hydra-figcaption\">\n                <span class=\"hydra-image-caption\">New Cummins diesels are 20 percent lighter and make 20 percent more horsepower than the Detroit Diesels they replace.<\/span><br \/>\n                <span class=\"article_image_credit italic margin_right_xs\">Capt. Vincent Daniello<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/section>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Engines and Performance<\/h2>\n<p>While Cummins\u2019 530 hp QSC 8.3-liter diesels are 20 percent lighter and make 20 percent more horsepower than the original 435 hp Detroit Diesel 6V92 engines, the added weight of sound-mitigating and climate-stabilizing insulation, a reconfigured bridge, and the ballast needed for this boat\u2019s unique seaworthiness net only about 2 knots faster speed overall. Fuel burned at the end of a typical day is about the same with the new engines as with the old motors.<\/p>\n<p>Those Detroit Diesels are older than many of the Coast Guard \u00adengineers working on them, and it shows. \u201cWhen we go out and the boat isn\u2019t making full power [with Detroit Diesels], we have to check fuel pressure, look for air restrictions, check the valve clearances, maybe replace fuel injectors, or remove and clean the aftercooler,\u201d says Chief Petty Officer Lantz Fortner, who has been an engineer aboard 47 MLBs since 2014. \u201cThe Cummins engines have a lot less unscheduled downtime and a lot less troubleshooting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While the new Cummins are \u00adoff-the-shelf, the controls aren\u2019t. Cummins partnered with Glendinning Products, a leader in marine engine controls for five decades, to ensure that shift and throttle controls are waterproof to International \u00adElectrotechnical Commission Standard IP67 (submerged 1 meter for 30\u00a0minutes). The incorporated \u00adRollover \u00adController returns engines to \u00adneutral and idle if the boat rolls past 110 degrees. Programming ensures that the diesels won\u2019t stall when shifting between hard ahead and hard astern in dangerous surf.<\/p>\n<section class=\"hydra-container\">\n<div class=\"hydra-canvas\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-7-1024x768.jpg?resize=800%2C600&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"hydra-image\" alt=\"Piloting from the open bridge helm\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1400px) 100vw, 1400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-7-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-7-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-7-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-7-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-7.jpg 1949w\">                <\/div><figcaption class=\"caption margin_top_xs full border_1 hydra-figcaption\">\n                <span class=\"hydra-image-caption\">An open bridge helm provides visibility forward and down to the starboard-side rescue well. Across the boat, another station with jog-lever and engine controls overlooks the portside rescue well.<\/span><br \/>\n                <span class=\"article_image_credit italic margin_right_xs\">Capt. Vincent Daniello<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/section>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Other Improvements<\/h2>\n<p>With more than 100 boats pounding through rough water for \u00adlonger than a quarter-century, metal fatigue is an issue. Aluminum sections identified as trouble spots are replaced fleetwide, and individual boats are inspected and flagged for additional repairs. Operation was streamlined based on 25 years of experience too. \u201cThe basics of the boat were sound, but they\u2019ve updated little things that make our day-to-day operation easier,\u201d Whitlow says. \u201cSomething as simple as our tow reel\u2014now it\u2019s easier to use and requires less maintenance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe LED lighting in the \u00adcabin is much brighter. It\u2019s safer for people moving around,\u201d Fortner adds. \u201cIn the engine room, you can see hazards more clearly.\u201d New, bright LED floodlights now illuminate all around the boat, versus holding a searchlight on a specific spot. Other changes decrease maintenance time. When high-impact-plastic fender \u00adcollars crack on older boats, \u00adaluminum studs are cut off and new fenders welded in place. Birdon, instead, reengineered detachable brackets. \u201cThe fact that we don\u2019t have to weld those studs onto the hull is a huge advantage,\u201d Fortner says, because it required disconnecting electronic engine controls and isolating battery chargers to preclude damage from electrical \u00adcurrent used while arc-welding on aluminum hulls.<\/p>\n<section class=\"hydra-container\">\n<div class=\"hydra-canvas\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-4-1024x768.jpg?resize=800%2C600&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"hydra-image\" alt=\"Survivors\u2019 Compartment on Coast Guard 47 MLB\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1400px) 100vw, 1400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-4-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-4-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-4-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-4-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-4.jpg 2000w\">                <\/div><figcaption class=\"caption margin_top_xs full border_1 hydra-figcaption\">\n                <span class=\"hydra-image-caption\">The Survivors\u2019 Compartment (main cabin) includes all the gear that Coast Guard 47 MLB crews need for rescue.<\/span><br \/>\n                <span class=\"article_image_credit italic margin_right_xs\">Capt. Vincent Daniello<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/section>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Crew Comfort<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cThe human performance people got involved, so we\u2019re less susceptible to chronic fatigue,\u201d Fortner says, which can be significant while spending long hours in rough seas. The reconfigured open bridge, for example, improves both operation and comfort. Previously, two Stidd chairs and two folding jump seats accommodated the boat\u2019s typical crew. Now three Shoxs impact-absorbing seats across the front keep most eyes looking ahead and to the sides, while the port aft Shoxs seat swivels for someone scanning astern or watching a tow. Sound and \u00advibration are also mitigated with\u00a0new, quieter diesels, along with \u00adsound-dampening insulation and specialized deck systems.<\/p>\n<p>There have been tweaks made during the project too. Initially, the starboard flying bridge control station had the steering jog-lever on the right and throttles on the left, while other helm stations positioned throttles on the right and jog-lever on the left. Those starboard station controls are now switched\u2014a small detail that becomes critical when taking quick action in 20-foot breaking surf.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>Read Next:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/how-to\/celebrating-the-40th-anniversary-of-us-coast-guard-rescue-swimmers\/\">Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of US Coast Guard Rescue Swimmers<\/a><\/p>\n<section class=\"hydra-container\">\n<div class=\"hydra-canvas\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-6-1024x768.jpg?resize=800%2C600&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"hydra-image\" alt=\"Pilothouse on 47 MLB\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1400px) 100vw, 1400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-6-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-6-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-6-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-6-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/uploads\/2025\/04\/BTG425-USCG-Lifeboat-6.jpg 2000w\">                <\/div><figcaption class=\"caption margin_top_xs full border_1 hydra-figcaption\">\n                <span class=\"hydra-image-caption\">Navigation and communication equipment, including a new Raymarine SIMS display, occupy the pilothouse dash.<\/span><br \/>\n                <span class=\"article_image_credit italic margin_right_xs\">Capt. Vincent Daniello<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/section>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Electronics<\/h2>\n<p>While most of each boat\u2019s radio equipment carries over through the\u00a0refit, Birdon is installing the Coast Guard\u2019s new Scalable Integrated Navigation System from Raymarine as well. The entire fleet, including some 47 MLBs not yet incorporated into Birdon\u2019s refit schedule, will upgrade their electronics by 2026 for either primary navigation aboard small boats or redundancy on ships.<\/p>\n<p>On older 47 MLBs, navigation and radar equipment might be noticeably different when crews switch between boats. Now operation, training, troubleshooting and spare parts will all become standard across the entire fleet. Future upgrades, such as adding FLIR cameras, which are not currently installed on 47 MLBs, can network with existing equipment.<\/p>\n<p>Increased integration is particularly helpful. \u201cNow we see AIS contacts right on the radar and plotter screen. It gives a better snapshot of what\u2019s around,\u201d \u00adWhitlow says. AIS alerts are more configurable too, providing \u201can extra layer of safety.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Raymarine also added encrypted AIS messaging into the entire Coast Guard system. Radar and AIS targets are easily shared from one boat and dropped right onto another boat\u2019s chart-plotter screen, or broadcast fleetwide. Search Action Plans or EPIRB coordinates relayed from shore can be uploaded directly onto navigation displays rather than manually entered aboard each boat, and shoreside command can monitor individual vessels in real time. Data sharing between Coast\u00a0Guard and law-enforcement vessels utilizing Raymarine \u00adequipment facilitates interagency cooperation as well.<\/p>\n<p>Why do Coast Guard men and women head offshore in small boats in weather that keeps others tied to the dock? \u201cMy pay is the reward I feel for serving the \u00adcommunity, and the pride after a rescue, in knowing those people and your crew are safe,\u201d Fortner says. \u201cIt\u2019s just people \u00adhelping people.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The newly renovated 47 MLB is an excellent tool to that end. \u201cI trust the boat to do what it is supposed to do,\u201d he adds. \u201cThe lights stay burning, the shafts keep \u00adturning, and the boat stays upright to get us home safely.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Specs (from USCG 47 MLB Operator\u2019s Manual)<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\">\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>LOA:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>48\u201911\u201d (with rub rails)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Beam Overall:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>15\u20190\u2033 (with rub rails)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Displacement:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>40,000 lb. (boat, full fuel, outfit; no crew or cargo)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Freeboard Bow:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>6\u20198\u2033<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Freeboard Amidships Deck Recess:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>2\u20192\u2033<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Freeboard Aft:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>7\u20191\u2033<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Draft:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>4\u20196\u2033<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Overhead Clearance:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>18\u20196\u2033<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Fuel Capacity:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>394 gal. (they fill only to 95 percent, which is 373 gal.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Potable Water Capacity:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>5 gal.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Previous Power<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Twin Detroit Diesel electronically controlled 6V92TA 435 bhp at 2,100 rpm<\/li>\n<li>\n<strong>Transmission:<\/strong> Reintjes WVS 234 UP, 2:1 reduction<\/li>\n<li>\n<strong>Props:<\/strong> 4-blade, 28\u2033 diameter x 36\u2033 pitch<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">New Power<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Cummins QSC8.3 530 bhp at 2,800 rpm<\/li>\n<li>\n<strong>Transmission:<\/strong> ZF 2:1 reduction<\/li>\n<li>\n<strong>Props:<\/strong> \u00ad 4-blade, 27\u2033 diameter x 27.75\u2033 pitch<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/boats\/refitting-coast-guard-motor-lifeboats-to-continue-saving-lives\/\">Refitting Coast Guard Motor Lifeboats to Continue Saving Lives<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/\">Boating Mag<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> \t<BR><br \/>\n <BR><\/BR><br \/>\n    Capt. Vincent Daniello<br \/>\n \t<BR><br \/>\n<BR><\/BR><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.boatingmag.com\/boats\/refitting-coast-guard-motor-lifeboats-to-continue-saving-lives\/\">Go to boatingmag<\/a><br \/>\n \t<BR><br \/>\n <BR><\/BR><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Refitting Coast Guard Motor Lifeboats to Continue Saving Lives Crews from US Coast Guard \u00adStation Barnegat Light train in surf aboard newly refit 47-foot Motor Lifeboats. Scott Nevins While Coast Guard air crews often grab headlines, sometimes flying hundreds of miles offshore into unimaginable conditions to save mariners in peril, boaters in trouble closer to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2168,126,148,63,3463],"tags":[127],"class_list":["post-8079","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-boating-safety","category-boatingmag","category-boats","category-coast-guard","category-may-2025","tag-boatingmag"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8079"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8079"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8079\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8079"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8079"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/krogragg.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8079"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}