laststandonzombieisland

The crew of USCGC Resolute (WMEC 620) poses for a group photo during a drug offload at Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg, July 17, 2025. Resolute deployed in support of Joint Interagency Task Force-South (JIATF-South), an interagency and international task force that conducts counter-illicit trafficking and security cooperation operations in the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Riley Perkofski)

The Coast Guard, after years of being in a doldrums of low personnel, staffing, recruiting, and retention that led to the inexcusable lay up of cutters and closing of stations and units in November 2023, it looks like the service is back, baby.

The Coast Guard announced last week that it exceeded its fiscal year 2025 (FY25) recruiting goals, achieving the highest accession numbers since 1991.

The Coast Guard accessed 5,204 active-duty enlisted service members in FY25, which was 121% of its FY25 target of 4,300. This success was the second year in a row that the Coast Guard met its active-duty enlisted recruiting goals after the Service brought in 4,422 new service members last year.

In addition to the success of the active-duty enlisted recruiting efforts, the Service commissioned 371 new officers to achieve 101% of the overall goal. This represents the largest officer target achieved in recorded history.

In the reserve component, the Coast Guard accessed 777 reservists, which was 104% of the official target of 750. This was the third year in a row that the Coast Guard met its recruiting goals for the Coast Guard Reserve.

The Coast Guard opened 7 new recruiting offices in FY25 and has been expanding its CGJROTC program, which is now at 14 units, with program-wide enrollment of over 1,200 cadets.

In conjunction with those numbers, the service, a few days ago, announced an RFI to identify prospective locations for an additional training center “that can be used to support projected service growth of up to 15,000 personnel.”

The authorized strength of the USCG is 44,500 active-duty members, and approximately 7,000 reservists, with another 8,577 civilian employees, and 21,000 volunteers in the Coast Guard Auxiliary.

The center would need to have:

• Lodging for 1,200 recruits
• A dining facility capable of seating 400 personnel
• A medical facility to support 1,000 personnel (minimum 200 medical encounters and 200 dental encounters per day)
• 14 classrooms sized to accommodate 30-60 students
• An auditorium with a capacity of 500+ students
• A pool with 6 lanes, 25 yards in length, and a minimum depth of 4 feet
• A multipurpose gymnasium/athletic/sports facility suitable for sitting 1,200 personnel
• Office space for 400 staff members
• A land area of 150-250 acres
• Proximity to a small commercial service or larger airport within 30 miles.