Aircraft
The Coast Guard operates about 210 aircraft. Fixed-wing aircraft, such as (Lockheed HC-130 Hercules turboprops and Dassault HU-25A Guardian jets) operate from Air Stations on long-duration missions. Helicopters (Aérospatiale HH-65 Dolphin, Sikorsky HH-60J Jayhawk, and Agusta MH-68 Stingray) operate from Air Stations, Air Facilities, and flight-deck equipped cutters, and can rescue people or intercept smuggling vessels. Some special MH- designated helicopters are armed with guns and some are equipped with armor to protect against small arms fire.
The Coast Guard flies several aircraft types:
- 27 Lockheed HC-130 Hercules
- 35 Dassault HU-25A Guardian
- 35 Sikorsky HH-60J Jayhawk
- 102 Aérospatiale HH-65 Dolphin
- 8 Agusta MH-68 Stingray - were flown by the Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron (HITRON) based in Jacksonville, Florida until late 2007.
- 11 CASA HC-144A Ocean Sentry (testing and integration)
- 1 Gulfstream C-37A as a VIP transport for high ranking Coast Guard and Homeland Security officials.
- 1 Bombardier C-143A as a Medium Range Command and Control Aircraft (MRC2A)
- An unspecified number of RG-8A Condors (thought to be two).
The Coast Guard is planning to purchase 36 CASA CN-235 from Spanish aircraft manufacturer Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA) for medium range search. As of 26 February 2008, 3 aircraft have been delivered for testing and integration with a further 5 planned. During testing, one aircraft was pulled into active duty for the search downed Air Force pilots, in which the aircraft demonstrated its capabilities.
The Coast Guard is also purchasing Bell Eagle Eye UAVs as part of the Deepwater program. but this has been Cancelled.
In addition to regular Coast Guard aircraft, privately-owned general aviation aircraft are used by Coast Guard Auxiliarists for patrols and search-and-rescue missions.
Read more about this topic: Equipment Of The United States Coast Guard