Alaska represents twenty percent of the land area, twenty percent of the oil production, forty percent of the fresh water of the United States, but after Wyoming, it's the least populated state. Despite that contradiction, the state has an abundance of natural resources, history, and adventure-especially for the members of the Coast Guard that oversee its massive coastline. Captain Jeffrey Hartman served four tours of duty in Alaska with the Coast Guard. He outlines the history of Alaska and its culture and describes his experiences overseeing a number of rescue missions there. Hartman illustrates with personal experience the challenges and dangers the Service faces in carrying out its missions protecting the Alaska people, environment and maritime infrastructure. He flew helicopters from Coast Guard icebreakers, on rescue and law enforcement missions and managed the search and rescue program on Alaska's waters. Guarding Alaska explains the many important functions that the Coast Guard serves and also examines how it's changed in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. You'll feel like you're in the middle of the action as you gain a deeper appreciation for the state and the people who protect it. Guarding Alaska By Jeffrey Hartman iUniverse, Inc. Copyright © 2012 Captain Jeffrey Hartman USCG (ret) All right reserved. ISBN: 978-1-4759-2479-4 Contents PREFACE GUARDING ALASKA.....................................................xxiINTRODUCTION.................................................................xxiiiCHAPTER ONE ALASKA TOOK MY BREATH AWAY......................................1CHAPTER TWO PEELING THE ALASKA ONION........................................23CHAPTER THREE WHAT'S THE U S COAST GUARD....................................55CHAPTER FOUR THE COAST GUARD IN ALASKA......................................65CHAPTER FIVE WHAT DOES THE COAST GUARD DO?..................................71CHAPTER SIX ENFORCEMENT OF LAWS AND TREATIES (ELT)..........................79CHAPTER SEVEN DEFENSE READINESS.............................................99CHAPTER EIGHT MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION...............................109CHAPTER NINE SEARCH AND RESCUE (SAR)........................................131CHAPTER TEN AIDS TO NAVIGATION..............................................147CHAPTER ELEVEN ICE OPERATIONS...............................................155CHAPTER TWELVE MARITIME SAFETY..............................................181CHAPTER THIRTEEN BOATING SAFETY.............................................199CHAPTER FOURTEEN COOPERATION WITH OTHER AGENCIES (COOP).....................205CHAPTER FIFTEEN FUN & GAMES IN ALASKA.......................................213BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................................................223GLOSSARY.....................................................................227 Chapter One Alaska Took My Breath Away Dimensions, Diamonds, Dangers & Defining Dimensions Once when I was briefing congressional staffers who were on a visit to Alaska, I used a slide similar to graphic 1-1 depicting Alaska superimposed on a map of the lower 48. The staffers laughed as they said Senator Stevens used the same illustration frequently in trying to impress his colleagues. Despite the humor, the point was that getting around in Alaska is difficult. Even with its vast distances, there are less than 5,000 miles of paved roads. Land The land area of Alaska is 570,374 square miles. The population according to the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development was 710,231 in 2010. Of this population, 291,826, or nearly 42%, were in Anchorage. It's said in Alaska (outside Anchorage) that the good thing about Anchorage is that it's close to Alaska, meaning it has all the big city problems not common in the rest of the state. The second largest city is Fairbanks at 31,627 followed closely by Juneau, the capital at 31,275. Sitka is the fourth largest with 8,881. Rounding out the top five is Ketchikan at 7,728. People The population includes 106,000 Natives (17%), or as the Canadians call them, First Nation peoples. These include eight different ethnic groups living in fairly well defined regions of Alaska. They are Tlingit and Haida Indians living in southeastern Alaska, Athabascan in the interior, Tsimshian living in Metlakatla on Annette Island, Aleut in the Aleutian Islands, the Yup'ik and Inupiat Eskimos and the Alutiq on Kodiak Island. A common joke in Alaska is that if it were divided in half, Texas would be the third largest state. Alaska contains 20% of the land area of the other forty-nine states combined. More importantly than just its size, Alaska also contains vast amounts of valuable natural resources. Diamonds Alaska really doesn't have diamonds, or at least they haven't been discovered yet, but it has nearly everything else of value, and in great abundance. The natural resources include gold, silver, copper, mo