Cyclone-class patrol ship

The Cyclone-class patrol ships are a class of coastal patrol boats, formerly in service with the United States Navy. Most of these ships, named for weather phenomenae, were launched between 1992 and 1994. The primary mission of these ships is coastal patrol and interdiction surveillance, an important aspect of littoral operations outlined in the Navy's strategy, "Forward...From the Sea." These ships also provided full mission support for U.S. Navy SEALs and other special operations forces. Several ships of the class were transferred to the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) for a time and then later returned.
The Cyclone-class ships were assigned to Naval Special Warfare. Of the 14 ships, nine originally operated out of the Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Norfolk, Virginia, and four originally operated from the Naval Amphibious Base Coronado. These ships provide the United States Naval Special Warfare Command with a fast, reliable platform that can respond to emergency requirements in a low intensity conflict environment. Six ships were decommissioned and loaned to the Coast Guard. Lead ship Cyclone was on loan from 2000 to 2004, then transferred to the Philippine Navy. Monsoon was loaned to the USCG in 2004 and Tempest in 2005, with both then returned in 2008. Shamal, Tornado, and Zephyr were on loan from 2004 to 2011. Upon return to the U.S. Navy they were all placed back in commission.
The ships that were on loan to the U.S. Coast Guard were used in a variety of roles, including search and rescue, interception, boarding, and inspection of foreign freighters arriving at United States ports.
In September 2010, the remaining ships of the class were recalled due to fatigue damage to their hulls. The class was designed for a lifespan of roughly 15 years. All but the newest member of the class, USS Tornado (PCC-14), have been in service longer.
As of 2015, ten of the U.S. Navy's 13 Cyclone-class patrol ships were deployed to Naval Support Activity Bahrain in the Persian Gulf, to deal with a potential conflict with Iran. The remaining three ships of the class are slated to be transferred to Naval Station Mayport in Florida to primarily perform drug interdiction duties with U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command (USNAVSO) / U.S. Fourth Fleet.
In March 2023, the last of the ships in this class were decommissioned and either designated for sale to a foreign military via FMS or due to be scrapped.
In the 1980s, the U.S. Navy developed a requirement for a replacement for the Vietnam War-era PB Mk III small (65 ft (20 m)) patrol boats used to transport SEAL teams. The first attempt to replace the PB Mk IIIs led to an order being placed in 1984 for a stealthy surface effect ship, the Special Warfare Craft, Medium, or SWCM, with a length of about 83 ft (25 m) and a displacement of 150 long tons (150 t). The SWCM, nicknamed "Sea Viking", was a failure, however, and construction of the prototype was abandoned in 1987.
After the failure of the innovative SWCM, it was decided to replace the PB Mk IIIs with a simple development of an existing design rather than wait for an entirely new design to be produced and developed. Bollinger Shipyards proposed a development of the Vosper Thornycroft Province-class fast attack craft built for Oman and Kenya, and this was selected by the U.S. Navy.
At 56.7 m (186 ft), the new design, at first designated PBC (Patrol Boat Coastal), and later PC, was much larger than the boats that they were to replace. It was planned to build 16 PBCs to replace the 17 PB Mk IIIs, with first deliveries expected in 1991. The program was stopped at 14 boats, however, as it was realised that the PC was too large for the SEAL delivery role.
Following the 2003 occupation of Iraq, the Cyclone-class boats were deployed to guard Iraq's offshore oil terminal. When Iraq took over responsibility for the terminal's defense, in 2005, ten of the Cyclone-class boats remained in the Persian Gulf, performing other patrol duties from its base in Manama, Bahrain.
On 30 March 2022, the Royal Bahrain Naval Forces commissioned five Cyclone-class patrol vessels that were decommissioned by the USN at Manama.
The U.S. Navy decommissioned the last two Cyclone-class patrol coastal ships stationed at Naval Support Activity Bahrain on 28 March 2023.
Zephyr, Shamal, and Tornado were homeported at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek (Virginia) but shifted homeport to Naval Station Mayport (Florida) All three were decommissioned in February 2021. Zephyr and Shamal are set to be scrapped while Tornado will be made available for sale to a foreign military.
This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain.