Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency to receive ex-US Coast Guard cutter

The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) will welcome a former US Coast Guard cutter into service by the first quarter of 2025, MMEA Director General Rear Admiral Datuk Mohd Rosli Abdullah confirmed during a recent official visit to the United States.

The vessel to be transferred is ex-USCGC Steadfast, a medium endurance cutter (WMEC) that was operated by the US Coast Guard for 56 years until it was decommissioned in February of this year. The vessel was subsequently declared an excess defense article (EDA) to be made available for foreign military sale (FMS) by the coast guard.

The WMEC is currently undergoing refurbishment at the coast guard yard in Baltimore, Maryland, prior to being commissioned into service with the MMEA. The upgrade works will cover the vessel's structural integrity, the engines and generators, the communication and navigation systems, and the accommodation spaces.

Ex-Steadfast was one of 16 Reliance-class WMECs built for the US Coast Guard between 1962 and 1968. All but 12 of the Reliance-class vessels remain in US service.

While in US service, ex-Steadfast had been involved in successful narcotics seizure operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean in 2019, 2020, and 2021.