USCGC ''Jarvis'' (WHEC-725) was a ''Hamilton''-class cutter of the United States Coast Guard. She was launched on 24 April 1971 and commissioned on 4 August 1971 homeported at Honolulu, Hawaii; served on Ocean Station November and fisheries patrols and search and rescue missions in the Bering Sea. She received a FRAM upgrade in 1990–2. ''Jarvis'' was decommissioned on 2 October 2012 and in January 2013 the Coast Guard announced that she would be transferred to the

Bangladesh Navy The Bangladesh Navy () is the naval warfare branch of the Bangladesh Armed Forces, responsible for the defence of Bangladesh's of maritime territorial area from any external threat, the security of sea ports and exclusive economic zones of Ban ...

late that year. She was commissioned as BNS ''Somudra Joy'' (F-28) on 23 December 2013.

Construction

History

The USCGC ''Jarvis'' was named for David H. Jarvis, a hero of the

United States Revenue Cutter Service The United States Revenue Cutter Service was established by an Act of Congress () on 4 August 1790 as the Revenue-Marine at the recommendation of the nation's first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton. The federal government bod ...

. During the harsh winter of 1897–1898, Lieutenant Jarvis of the U.S. Revenue Cutter ''Bear'' led the

Overland Relief Expedition The Overland Relief Expedition, also called the Alaska Relief Expedition or Point Barrow-Overland Relief Expedition, was an expedition in the winter of 1897–1898 by officers of the United States Revenue Cutter Service to save the lives of 265 w ...

to bring needed food to 265 whalers whose ships had been stranded in the ice off the northern coast of Alaska.King, pp 94–107 The

high endurance cutter The designation of high endurance cutter (WHEC) was created in 1965 when the United States Coast Guard adopted its own designation system. High endurance cutters encompass the largest cutters previously designated by the United States Navy as g ...

was launched 24 April 1971 at

Avondale Shipyard Avondale Shipyard was an independent shipbuilding company, acquired by Litton Industries, in turn acquired by Northrop Grumman Corporation. In 2011, along with the former Ingalls Shipbuilding, the yard was part of Huntington Ingalls Industries. It ...

near New Orleans, Louisiana and was commissioned 4 August 1972 at Honolulu, Hawaii, where she would be based for the rest of her career. During her first Alaska patrol, she was caught in a heavy storm and ran aground in the Bering Sea next to the Aleutian Islands. She received a $55 million

Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization The Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM) program of the United States Navy extended the lives of World War II-era destroyers by shifting their mission from a surface attack role to that of a submarine hunter. The FRAM program also cover ...

Program (FRAM) upgrade at

Todd Pacific Shipyards Vigor Shipyards is the current entity operating the former Todd Shipyards after its acquisition in 2011. Todd Shipyards was founded in 1916, which owned and operated shipyards on the West Coast of the United States, East Coast of the United St ...

in Seattle, Washington between July 1990 and December 1992. ''Jarvis'' completed her final cruise in late September 2012, and was removed from active service the following week.

Grounding Incident

During a severe storm in November 1972 off the coast of Alaska along the Aluetian Islands, the USCGC Jarvis ran aground after dragging anchor and started to take on water. The ship was holed, but soon repaired when more violent storm caused further leaking and the engine room to fill with water disabling the engines. Back in heavy seas, the ship experienced severe rolls at one time experience a sixty-degree roll. "At 7:04 pm, for one of the few times in Coast Guard history a "MAYDAY" call for help would come from a Coast Guard vessel." A Japanese fishing trawler arrived just in time to tow them to safety before it crashed into rocks, towing them to Dutch Harbor where the ship was repaired and then disembarked. No crew members were lost.

Transfer to Bangladesh Navy

In January 2013 Admiral

Cecil D. Haney Cecil Eugene Diggs Haney (born December 1, 1955) is a retired United States Navy Admiral (United States), admiral who served as Unified Combatant Command#Combatant Commanders, Commander, United States Strategic Command (STRATCOM) from November 15, ...

, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, announced that ''Jarvis'' would be transferred to Bangladesh in mid-2013."US to continue maritime partnership", News, bdnews24.com The Bangladeshis hope to convert the BNS ''Somudra Joy'' into a guided missile frigate. A team of U.S. Coast Guard personnel visited Bangladesh in February 2013. The first group of

personnel, consisting of 7 officers and 13 sailors, left Bangladesh in February to start training aboard ''Jarvis'' on 13 March 2013. She was officially handed over to the

on 23 May 2013."US hands over naval ship", News, bdnews24.com During her transit to Bangladesh she was diverted to the Philippines to distribute emergency aid for the victims of

Typhoon Haiyan Typhoon Haiyan, known in the Philippines as Super Typhoon Yolanda, was an extremely powerful and catastrophic tropical cyclone that is among List of the most intense tropical cyclones, the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded. Upon ...

, arriving there on 29 November 2013."Bangladesh sends aid to Philippines", Tribune Online Report, Dhaka Tribune She arrived at her new home Chittagong on 13 December 2013 and was commissioned on 23 December 2013.

Notes

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External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jarvis Hamilton-class cutters Ships built in Bridge City, Louisiana 1971 ships Ships transferred from the United States Coast Guard to the Bangladesh Navy