UNITED STATES COAST GUARD (USCG) AVIATION

UNITED STATES COAST GUARD (USCG) AVIATION

UNITED STATES COAST GUARD (USCG) AVIATION
Paramilitary ε39,750 active personnel., Status: A branch of the Armed Forces operating under the Department of Homeland Security.,, Mission: Maritime law enforcement, Search and Rescue (SAR), and coastal defense.

Forces by Role & Equipment by Type
Coast Guard Air Command

• AIRCRAFT Total 60 Aircraft.

Maritime Patrol & Search and Rescue (SAR) with 44 ac:

• 15 Lockheed Martin HC-130J Hercules;,,
• 11 Lockheed Martin HC-130H Hercules;,,
• 13 Airbus HC-144B Ocean Sentry;,,
• 5 Airbus HC-144A Ocean Sentry.,,

Transport & Utility with 16 ac:

• 14 Alenia C-27J Spartan (Medium transport);,,
• 2 Gulfstream V (C-37A) (PAX/Long-range transport).,,

Special Mission (Maritime Detection & Monitoring):

• 3 Bombardier P-9A Pale Ale (Modified DHC-8; GOCO fleet owned by ACC and primarily tasked to USSOUTHCOM for counter-narcotics operations).,

• HELICOPTER Total 142 Helicopters.

Search and Rescue (SAR) & Multi-Role with 142 hel:

• 44 Sikorsky MH-60T Jayhawk (Medium-range recovery);,,
• 49 Eurocopter MH-65E Dauphin II (Short-range recovery);,,
• 49 Eurocopter MH-65D Dauphin II.,,

Note: By 2026, the U.S. Coast Guard remains the core of national paramilitary air power, providing critical "grey-zone" capabilities and Search and Rescue across the Atlantic and Pacific zones., While thousands of independent aircraft are operated by federal agencies (such as CBP and the FBI) and local police departments for urban security and border patrol, these assets are typically civilian-registered and do not appear in military-standard role-based force indices. The USCG fleet is highly integrated with U.S. Navy standards, emphasizing Maritime Domain Awareness and the protection of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).,