U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Diligence conducts joint training with the U.S. Army’s Special Operations Training Battalion off the coast of Tampa, Florida, Dec. 12, 2023.
U.S. Coast Guard photo by ET2 Thor Cocchi.
Story by Ensign Jordan Sykes, U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area
PENSACOLA, Fla. — The crew of USCGC Diligence (WMEC 616) returned to homeport in Pensacola after a 52-day anti-drug patrol in the Caribbean Sea in which interdicted six cocaine smugglers. Thursday, December 14, 2023.
During the patrol, USCGC Diligence’s crew worked in support of Joint Interagency Task Force South (JIATF-South) within the Coast Guard Seventh District’s area of responsibility to interdict and deter the smuggling of illicit narcotics. Diligence’s crew disrupted approximately 700 kilograms of cocaine with an estimated street value of over $20.3 million dollars and apprehended six suspected smugglers.
Coast Guard Cutter Diligence also conducted a joint training exercise with the U.S. Army’s Special Operations Training Battalion. The Diligence crew and Army pilots completed daytime and nighttime helicopter landing evolutions during the exercise. This exercise strengthened the interoperability of the Coast Guard and the U.S. Army.
“Stopping the flow of drugs to the United States is a challenging mission that requires a significant amount of teamwork,” said Cmdr. Nolan Cain, Diligence’s commanding officer. “The Diligence crew had the opportunity to work alongside our Department of Defense and international partners in this unified effort. The dedication and hard work of the Diligence crew and our partners is incredibly inspiring.”
U.S. Coast Guard photo by ET2 Thor Cocchi.
Detecting and interdicting illegal drug traffickers on the high seas involves significant interagency and international coordination. JIATF-South in Key West, Florida, conducts detection and monitoring of aerial and maritime transit of illegal drugs. Once interdiction becomes imminent, the law enforcement phase of the operation begins, and control of the operation shifts to the U.S. Coast Guard throughout the interdiction and apprehension process. Interdictions in the Caribbean Sea are performed by members of the U.S. Coast Guard under the authority and control of the Coast Guard’s Seventh District, headquartered in Miami.
Diligence is a 210-foot medium endurance cutter with 78 crewmembers. The cutter’s primary missions are counterdrug operations, migrant interdiction, enforcing federal fishery laws, and search and rescue in support of Coast Guard operations throughout the Western Hemisphere.
–USCG–
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