USCGC Morgenthau (WHEC-722)

USCGC Morgenthau (WHEC-722)

USCGC Morgenthau (WHEC 722), commissioned on March 10, 1969, was the eighth of twelve 378-foot Hamilton-class high endurance cutters (WHECs) built by Avondale Shipyards in New Orleans, Louisiana. First homeported at Governors Island, New York, Morgenthau was active in the Vietnam War, conducting underway replenishment, naval gunfire support, and patrol duties off the coast of Vietnam until relieved by a 311' cutter in 1971. Her current motto, translated from latin, is "Pride of the Pacific." Morgenthau is currently homeported at Integrated Support Command Alameda, Coast Guard Island, Alameda, California.

In 1977, Morgenthau became the first cutter to have women permanently assigned, followed shortly thereafter by USCGC Gallatin (WHEC-721). Her Pacific coast activities have included drug interdiction and seizures, foreign and domestic fisheries enforcement, search and rescue, and alien migrant interdiction.

In 1989, Morgenthau was decommissioned to undergo a major mid-life renovation, the Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization(FRAM) to upgrade berthing and living spaces, rejuvenate engineering systems, and modernize her major weapons and sensors. Upon recommissioning in 1991, Morgenthau resumed her missions in the Pacific Ocean.