USCGC Dallas ( WHEC - 716 ) The USCGC " Dallas " ( WHEC - 716 ) was a Coast Guard high endurance cutter commissioned in 1967 at the Avondale Shipyard in New Orleans , Louisiana . She was the sixth ship or boat to bear the name of Alexander J . Dallas , the Secretary of the Treasury under President James Madison ( 1814 – 1816 ) . She is one of twelve Hamilton class cutter s built for the Coast Guard . The " Dallas " served in the Atlantic Ocean , venturing as far away as the Black Sea and Africa on occasion . The " Dallas " was at first home ported at the former Coast Guard base on Governors Island , New York . She was relocated to her current homeport of Charleston , South Carolina in September 1996 . She was decommissioned on 30 March 2012 , and was transferred to the Philippines on May 22 , 2012 as an excess defense article through the Foreign Assistance Act . 1960s and 1970s . In her earlier years , the " Dallas " collected meteorological and oceanographic data on " ocean station " as part of the " Gate Project " , and she assisted commercial aircraft crossing the Atlantic Ocean . During seven combat patrols off the coast of Vietnam , " Dallas " list of accomplishments included 161 gunfire support missions involving 7 , 665 rounds of her 5 - inch ammunition . This resulted in 58 sampans destroyed and 29 Viet - Cong supply routes , bases , camps , or rest areas damaged or destroyed . Her guns made her very valuable to the naval missions in the area . " Dallas " served as a patrol vessel for the 1977 America ' s Cup Regatta out of Newport Rhode , Island . In September , 1978 , " Dallas " joined in the search on Georges Bank for the " Capt . Cosmo " , a fishing vessel out of Gloucester , Massachusetts . " Dallas " encountered seas during that search as high as the bridge wings , the deck of which are 38 feet from the waterline . " Dallas " came upon the " Queen Elizabeth II " on that patrol , who reported taking a rogue wave over the bow which cracked windows on the bridge . The Captain Cosmo was lost with all hands in high seas . In April 1979 , as " Dallas " was wrapping up a patrol and heading into Bermuda for a weekend of R & R , she received orders to sail south to the Caribbean Island of Saint Vincent . Its volcano , La Soufriere , was threatening to erupt and " Dallas " might be called upon to evacuate islanders . After several days of patrolling nearby , the volcano did send a large ash plum skyward , but an evacuation was not needed . 1980s . In 1980 , the " Dallas " was the command ship for the historic Mariel Boatlift , during which 125 , 000 Cuban refugees set sail for the shores of Florida . At the time , it was the largest humanitarian operation ever undertaken by the Coast Guard . In 1983 , the " Dallas " earned a Coast Guard Unit Commendation for achievements that included the seizure of seven vessels smuggling over 103 , 000 lb . of marijuana and the interdiction of 90 illegal Haitian migrants . In 1986 , the " Dallas " served as the on - scene command for the search and rescue operation following the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster . For her service during this operation , the " Dallas " received the Coast Guard ’ s Meritorious Unit Commendation . In the late 1980s , the " Dallas " underwent a fleet rehabilitation and modernization ( FRAM ) program in the Portland , Maine , yards of the Bath Iron Works . During that period , her living quarters , electronics , sensors , and weapons systems were upgraded to allow continued service beyond the year 2000 . The " Dallas " was recommissioned by the " cross - decked " crew from the " Gallatin " on December 20 , 1989 . 1990s and 2000s . During the Haitian migrant crisis of 1991 - 92 , the " Dallas " performed as the flagship of a flotilla of twenty - seven Coast Guard cutters that rescued 35 , 000 migrants from hundreds of overcrowded , unseaworthy vessels . The " Dallas " received a Humanitarian Service Medal and another Coast Guard Unit Commendation for her efforts in establishing an operation task organization that serves as the model for today ’ s Coast Guard multi - unit operation . In response to the renewed threats of a mass exodus from Haiti , Operation Able Manner began in January 1993 , with large numbers of Coast Guard and U . S . Navy ships and aircraft deploying to the Caribbean . The " Dallas " assumed command of this flotilla on three separate patrols in 1993 , earning her yet another Coast Guard Unit Commendation . The " Dallas " spent the summer of 1994 representing the Coast Guard of France at the 50th D - Day invasion anniversary . During those festivities , the " Dallas " steamed with the reenactment fleet to commemorate the event . Soon after the D - Day celebration , the " Dallas " was called upon to be the flagship for the Operation Able Vigil in response to another mass exodus from Cuba . Able Vigil was the largest Coast Guard commanded , but multi - service , operation since the 1940s . During the summer of 1995 , the " Dallas " operated with the U . S . Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean Sea . Among her many assignments , " Dallas " worked with the Battle Group in support of Operation Deny Flight off the coast of Yugoslavia . The " Dallas ’ s " crew conducted nation - building training and professional exchange in various countries in the Mediterranean , the Adriatic Sea , and the Black Sea . The " Dallas " worked with the navies , coast guards , and maritime agencies of Turkey , Romania , Bulgaria , Tunisia , Slovenia , Albania , and Italy . This marked the first time that a U . S . Coast Guard cutter operated with the U . S . Sixth Fleet and also entered the Black Sea . " Dallas " earned the Armed Forces Service Medal for her contributions to Operations Deny Flight , Maritime Monitor , and Sharp Guard . During 1997 and 1998 , the " Dallas " served as the flagship for Operations Frontier Shield and Frontier Lance , the largest interagency , international counter - narcotic operations in the Caribbean to date . In the summer of 1999 , the " Dallas " was again assigned to the U . S . Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean and Black Seas to support allied forces during the conflict in Kosovo . While en route , the conflict ended , but the " Dallas " was ordered to remain in theater to conduct training and professional exchanges with US Naval units and foreign naval forces . The " Dallas " became the first Coast Guard cutter to enter the ports of Haifa , Israel , and Antalya , Turkey , and she conducted training exercises with the Ukrainian Navy , Turkish Coast Guard , Georgian Navy , and the armed forces of Malta . During the entire 1990 - 2000 decade " Dallas " held the Commander of the Atlantic Area ’ s Operational Readiness Award for sustained excellence in all Coast Guard warfare mission areas . Following the terrorist attacks of September 11 , 2001 on New York and Virginia , the " Dallas " was deployed as part of Operation Noble Eagle off the coast of the southeastern United States . Her mission was to interrogate and board vessels entering US waterways . This marked a change in the Coast Guard ’ s operations as an emphasis on homeland security preceded the " Dallas ’ s " previous missions of drug interdiction and operations with the U . S . Navy overseas . During the summer of 2002 , the " Dallas " took part in a new approach to maritime drug interdiction . Deployed alongside the " " , the only other 378 - foot cutter on the East Coast , the " Dallas " took part in Operation New Frontier . Operation New Frontier utilizes armed helicopters from the Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron ( HITRON ) to stop small high - speed vessel ( " go - fasts " ) before they can reach their destination . In 2003 , the " Dallas " was assigned to the U . S . Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean Sea in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom . The " Dallas " initially provided armed escorts through the Straits of Gibraltar and conducted boardings of vessels leaving the Suez Canal , as the Iraqis fled . The " Dallas " made port calls in Rota Spain , Split Croatia , Sicily , and Madeira Portugal . In August 2008 , the " Dallas " was sent to Georgia ' s shoreline on the Black Sea in support of Operation Assured Delivery in order to bring humanitarian supplies to those affected by the South Ossetia war . With Georgia ' s main naval base at Poti effectively under Russian control , the " Dallas " instead docked at Batumi , as did the and 9 other NATO ships . The " Dallas ’ s " awards include : two Joint Meritorious Unit Award s , three Coast Guard Unit Commendation s , a Navy Unit Commendation ( as part of the " Battle Force 6th Fleet Task Force 60 " for Operation Iraqi Freedom ) , two Coast Guard Meritorious Unit Commendation s , a Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation , the Vietnam Service Medal , the Armed Forces Service Medal , three Humanitarian Service Medal s , numerous Coast Guard Special Operations Service Ribbon s , the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation , the Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Unit Citation , and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal . The Philippine Navy officially confirmed the Joint Visual Inspection ( JVI ) by its officials led by Rear Admiral Orwen Cortez of South Carolina - based Hamilton class cutter USCGC Dallas ( WHEC - 716 ) from October 31 to November 5 , 2011 . The ship was transferred as an excess defense article through the Foreign Assistance Act via a " hot transfer " in May 2012 . It was said that the Philippine Navy will be naming it after a World War II Hero , Ramon A . Alcaraz during the commemoration of the 70th Anniversary of Fall of Corregidor . See also . BRP " Ramon Alcaraz " ( PF - 16 )