USCGC Valiant ( WMEC - 621 ) USCGC " Valiant " ( WMEC - 621 ) is a United States Coast Guard medium endurance cutter . She was laid down February 28 , 1966 at American Ship Building Company , Lorain , Ohio and launched January 14 , 1967 . She was commissioned November 3 , 1967 at Galveston , Texas her first homeport . History . The United States Coast Guard Cutter " Valiant " is a multi - mission , medium endurance cutter home ported in Miami Beach , Florida . " Valiant " operates in the Atlantic Ocean , Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico for Commander , Coast Guard Atlantic Area . Missions include search and rescue , maritime law enforcement , marine environmental protection , and national defense operations . " Valiant " was built in Lorain , Ohio by the American Shipbuilding Company , and is the seventh of sixteen cutters of her class . " Valiant " ' s keel was laid on February 28 , 1966 and she was launched on January 14 , 1967 . She was first commissioned on November 3 , 1967 in Galveston , Texas where she served for 24 years , In November 1991 , " Valiant " was decommissioned for a mid - life overhaul . On January 7 , 1994 , " Valiant " was re - commissioned in her present homeport of Miami Beach , Florida . Capabilities . " Valiant " normally carries 12 officers and 63 crewmembers . An important aspect of " Valiant " ' s design is the attention given to habitability . The ship has its own galley , sickbay ; laundry , sewage treatment system , televisions , radios , and digital satellite television . Powered by two V16 ALCO diesel engines , " Valiant " is capable of a maximum sustained of . " Valiant " is equipped with two controllable pitch propellers , which makes her highly maneuverable . " Valiant " has a 25 mm machine cannon mounted on the bow and is capable of firing high explosive projectiles at a rate of 180 round per minute . In addition , the vessel mounts two . 50 caliber heavy machine guns . The 24 foot " Cutter Boat Large " ( CBL ) and the 23 foot " Over The Horizon " ( OTH ) are used to visit and board other vessels at sea . The special towing bitt on the fantail allows " Valiant " to tow vessels up to 10 times her size . Another feature of " Valiant " is her ability to carry a Coast Guard HH - 65 Dolphin helicopter . The helicopter extends the ships surveillance range for law enforcement and reduces response time for search and rescue mission . " Valiant " ' s mission capabilities are greatly enhanced by sophisticated electronic equipment such as : a Global Positioning System , surface search radar with a computerized collision avoidance system , radio direction finders , fathometers , and different types of radios . Operational history . " Valiant " played an important role in the 1980 Cuban Boatlift in conjunction with dozens of Coast Guard Cutters , small boats , aircraft , and Navy Vessels . On June 8 , 1990 the Tanker Ship MEGA BORG ' s pump room exploded leaving the crippled , on fire and leaking oil . Responding rapidly to an event offshore , " Valiant " ' s crew overcame complex logistical problems to mount an effective fire fighting , salvage and pollution cleanup campaign . Since 1994 , " Valiant " has been actively engaged in Alien Migration Interdiction Operation ( AMIO ) . " Valiant " recovered and interdicted over 500 Haitian and Cuban migrants during Operations ABLE MANNER and ABLE VIGIL . " Valiant " repatriated over 1 , 900 Haitian migrants for Guantanamo Bay , Cuba to Port au Prince , Haiti over the course of 11 passages . In 1996 , " Valiant " was Patrol Commander for the Summer Olympic Sailing events in Savannah , Georgia , directing over 29 Coast Guard assets in providing security for 800 athletes from 98 Countries . Following the Olympics , " Valiant " earned an overall excellence award at Refresher Training in Mayport , Florida , with an overall score of 98 % . In 1997 , " Valiant " participated in Operation TRADEWINDS and trained over 500 Caribbean Coast Guard members from 12 countries in Damage Control , Engineering , and Seamanship Fundamentals . In January 1999 , " Valiant " was tasked to escort the motor vessel CANNES to the coastal waters of Galveston , TX . During that escort a boarding team from " Valiant " assisted Law Enforcement Detachment ( LEDET ) 406 South with searching the merchant ship , resulting in the discovery of over 10 , 000 pounds of cocaine . Following the escort of the vessel CANNES , " Valiant " arrived at Mayport , Florida , where for the second time in a row , the ship earned the Atlantic Area Commander ' s award for operational readiness at Tailored Ship Training Availability ( TSTA ) in February 1999 . Just after midnight on November 7 , 1999 , " Valiant " discovered a partially submerged vessel . As " Valiant " approached , a man was on top of the sinking hull and another man floating in the water . The two men were sailing back to Antigua when their boat started to take on water , soon after a wave struck the boat causing it to capsize . The two men spent over 30 hours in the water , just before " Valiant " ’ s crew rescued them . In November 1999 , approximately south of St . Croix , " Valiant " rendezvoused with the British Warship HMS Northumberland . A USCG LEDET boarding team aboard Northumberland intercepted the motor vessel ADRIATIK in the vicinity of Barbados . After three days , the boarding team found two and half tons of cocaine . The boarding concluded with the arrest of 13 crewmembers and the seizure of both the vessel and the cocaine . During the passage of Hurricane Lenny in November 1999 , " Valiant " was tasked to lead the search and rescue efforts for two missing sailing vessels in the vicinity of Saba Island . For a period of two days " Valiant " faced 10 – 15 foot swells and winds up to . " Valiant " was tasked as On Scene Commander supervising the search efforts of 6 Coast Guard Cutters and 29 Aircraft assets . " Valiant " and its crew covered over 1250 miles searching for two missing sailboats . Unfortunately despite locating over 8 overturned and capsized vessels adrift in the area , only one survivor was found . In 2004 , it was present during the 2004 Haiti Rebellion near Port - au - Prince , engaging in Alien Migration Interdiction Operations . The " Valiant " repatriated 531 Haitians intercepted on boats as they tried flee the growing violence and turmoil fueled by rebel forces intent on removing President Jean - Bertrand Aristide from power . On January 13 , 2010 , the " Valiant " was ordered to assist in the humanitarian relief efforts following the 2010 Haiti earthquake .