Croatian Coast Guard

Croatian Coast Guard Obalna straža Republike Hrvatske
Emblem of Croatian Coast Guard
Active	2007
Country	Croatia
Allegiance	Croatia
Branch	Croatian Navy
Role	combat against terrorism, trafficking of people, narcotics, Maritime Search and Rescue, protection of ecology, fishing, control of traffic
Size	8 ships
H/Q	Lora Naval Base
Commanders
Commander	Ship-of-the-Line Captain Marin Stošić
Notable commanders	Vice Admiral Zdravko Kardum
Insignia
Coast Guard Ensign
Aircraft flown
Patrol	Pilatus PC-9
Transport	Mil Mi-8

Old racing stripes on Croatian Navy's BS-73 Faust Vrančić

New racing stripes

Croatian Coast Guard (Croatian: Obalna straža Republike Hrvatske) is a division of the Croatian Navy responsible for protecting interests of the Republic of Croatia at sea. The Croatian Navy is composed of classical naval forces structured into a fleet and the second part is the Coast Guard that is solely consist of ships with peacetime duties, e.g. protection of ecology, fishing, control of tankers, ballast waters, combat against terrorism, trafficking of people, narcotics and similar.^[1]

History & Mission

On September 13, 2007, the Croatian Parliament passed a bill establishing the Croatian Coast Guard. The Coast Guard's mission is protect sovereign rights and carry out Croatia's jurisdiction in the Ecological and Fisheries Protection Zone, the continental shelf and the high seas. The Coast Guard will also monitor vessels sailing in the Croatian territorial waters. If vessels are caught violating Croatian or international regulations and disregard warnings by the Coast Guard, Coast Guard ships and airplanes are authorized to pursue them and if necessary open fire, while taking care not to jeopardize the lives of the vessel's crew.

Under the law, the commander of the Coast Guard is a Navy officer who is appointed and relieved of duty by the President of the Republic at the government's proposal.^[2]

Organizational structure and equipment

Organizational structure of Croatian Coast Guard:

• Coast Guard Command
  • 1st Division - Split
  • 2nd Division - Pula

Ships of Croatian Navy under the Command of Coast Guard:

• OB-01 Novigrad
• OB-02 Šolta
• OB-03 Cavtat
• OB-04 Hrvatska Kostajnica
• BŠ-72 Andrija Mohorovičić
• BS-73 Faust Vrančić
• Tugs LR-71 i LR-73

Croatian part of Adriatic Sea is also controlled by Croatian Police - Maritime department and Harbormasters’ offices (Lučka kapetanija) whose ships are marked similar to Navy ships.

Besides the warships, the Coast Guard has at its disposal several Pilatus PC-9 aircraft and Mil Mi-8 helicopters of the Croatian Air Force and Defense.

Future developments

The construction of the first out of projected 10 vessels is scheduled to start in 2010 and the final vessel is to be constructed by the end of 2013. These patrol boats will be built in Croatian shipyards and should be around 40 meters long, incorporating the latest stealth technology. Similar but slightly smaller vessels have recently been built for Libya. Follow-up orders have been made and 26 ships are now entering Libyan service. A second country is also rumoured to have ordered the vessels.

Gallery

• 

  Croatian Navy's patrol boats OB-03 Cavtat and OB-04 Hrvatska Kostajnica

• 

  BS-73 Faust Vrančić

• 

  OB-01 Novigrad with old pennant number and racing stripes

• 

  Tug LR-73

References

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ http://www.vlada.hr/en/naslovnica/novosti_i_najave/2007/rujan/vlada_u_sabor_uputila_prijedlog_zakona_o_obalnoj_strazi

See also

• Croatian Navy
• Lučke kapetanije