The stern deck of the USS Shamal (with
RIB)
Commissioning Information
IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 25, 1996
PATROL COASTAL SHIP SHAMAL (PC 13) TO
BE COMMISSIONED AT BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
The patrol coastal ship Shamal (PC 13)
will be commissioned at 10 a.m., Saturday, January
27, 1996, at the Baton Rouge dock adjacent to the
Naval War Memorial and USS Kidd Nautical Center, Baton
Rouge, Louisiana. Secretary of the Navy John H. Dalton
will be the ceremony's principal speaker. Ms. Nora
Slatkin, Executive Director, Central Intelligence
Agency, and former Assistant Secretary of the Navy
for Research, Development and Acquisition, the ship's
sponsor, will attend the ceremony. Other distinguished
guests will include the Honorable Thomas McHugh, Mayor
of Baton Rouge; Linda Imes, Mayor Pro Tempore of Baton
Rouge; the Honorable Steven S. Honigman, General Counsel
of the Navy; Rear Admiral Irve C. LeMoyne, Deputy
Commander in Chief, U.S. Special Operations Command;
and Rear Admiral Raymond C. Smith, Jr., Commander,
Navy Special Warfare Command. Shamal is the last of
13 Cyclone Class patrol ships authorized by Congress.
Named for a weather element, the ship's primary mission
is coastal patrol and interdiction surveillance, an
important aspect of littoral operations outlined in
the Navy's strategy, "Forward...From the Sea."
The ship will also provide full mission support for
Navy SEALs and other special operations forces. Patrol
coastal ships are armed with a Stinger missile station,
40mm grenade launchers, .50 caliber machine guns and
25mm chain guns. Shamal has a crew of four officers
and 24 Sailors, is 170 feet in length, has a beam
of 24 feet, and displaces approximately 331 tons fully
loaded. Lieutenant Commander Paul E. Flood, USN, from
Brooklyn, New York, will be the ship's commanding
officer. Media wishing to attend the ceremony should
contact Lieutenant Commander Jim Fallin, Navy Special
Warfare Command Public Affairs Officer, at (504) 356-1369.
