USS ''Firebolt'' (PC-10) is the 10th member of the of coastal

patrol boat A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval ship, naval vessel generally designed for Coastal defence and fortification, coastal defence, Border control, border security, or law ...

s of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. She is a vessel with a crew of approximately 30 sailors, normally homeported at

Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations ...

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

. Her armament includes two Mk38 chain guns, two Mk19 automatic grenade launchers, and two machine guns, as well as six

Stinger missile The FIM-92 Stinger is an American man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) that operates as an infrared homing surface-to-air missile (SAM). It can be adapted to fire from a wide variety of ground vehicles, and from helicopters and drones as th ...

s. She was laid down by

Bollinger Shipyards Bollinger Shipyards is an American constructor of ships, workboats and patrol vessels. Its thirteen shipyards and forty drydocks are located in Louisiana and Texas. Its drydocks range in capacity from vessels of 100 tons displacement to 22,000 t ...

on 17 September 1993, launched on 10 June 1994, commissioned into the Navy on 10 June 1995, and she was decommissioned on 23 February 2022.

Persian Gulf service

In February 2003, ''Firebolt'' deployed to

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

to operate in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

in support of

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used by the U.S. government for both the first stage (2001–2014) of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response ...

and

Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...

. While there, she rotated crews so that she could remain on station without returning home for leave. In February 2004, ''Firebolt'' collided with a navigational buoy off the coast of

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. The subsequent inquiry board into the incident led to the removal of Lieutenant Commander Michael T. Sullivan from command. On 24 April 2004, ''Firebolt''s

rigid-hulled inflatable boat A rigid inflatable boat (RIB), also rigid-hull inflatable boat or rigid-hulled inflatable boat (RHIB), is a lightweight but high-performance and high-capacity boat constructed with a rigid hull (watercraft), hull bottom joined to side-forming a ...

attempted a boarding operation on a

dhow Dhow (; ) is the generic name of a number of traditional sailing vessels with one or more masts with settee or sometimes lateen sails, used in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean region. Typically sporting long thin hulls, dhows are trading vessels ...

that was approaching the Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal in Iraq. As the boarding team of seven pulled alongside, the dhow exploded in an apparent

suicide bombing A suicide attack (also known by a wide variety of other names, see below) is a deliberate attack in which the perpetrators knowingly sacrifice their own lives as part of the attack. These attacks are a form of murder–suicide that is ofte ...

. Two sailors and one coast guardsman were killed when the explosion flipped the boat over, dumping her crew into the water. The coast guardsman was a member of the embarked Law Enforcement Detachment and was the first coast guardsman to die in action since the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. The survivors were picked up by an S-70B-2 Seahawk helicopter from the Australian frigate . On 26 April 2021, ''Firebolt,'' in formation with USCGC ''Baranof'', fired warning shots at several Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) fast inshore attack craft (FIAC) after the smaller boats closed to within 68 yards despite warnings via radio and loud-hailer. The U.S. ships were performing routine maritime security patrols in the international waters of the North Persian Gulf.

Photos

Image:USS_Firebolt_(PC-10)_2.jpg, USS ''Firebolt'' at Yorktown Naval Weapons Station

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Firebolt Cyclone-class patrol ships Patrol vessels of the United States Ships built in Lockport, Louisiana Maritime incidents in 2004 Ship bombings 1994 ships