Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City
Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City is a United States Coast Guard Air Station located 9 miles northwest of Atlantic City at the Atlantic City International Airport in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey. It is the northernmost, largest air station within the Coast Guard Fifth District.[2]
Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City | |||||||||
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| Part of FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center | |||||||||
| Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey in the United States | |||||||||
 Crew members refuel a US Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin at CGAS Atlantic City during January 2015 | |||||||||
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  Atlantic City Location in the United States | |||||||||
| Coordinates | 39°27′27″N 74°34′38″W | ||||||||
| Type | Coast Guard Air Station | ||||||||
| Site information | |||||||||
| Owner | Department of Homeland Security | ||||||||
| Operator | United States Coast Guard | ||||||||
| Controlled by | Fifth District | ||||||||
| Condition | Operational | ||||||||
| Aircraft operated | MH-65D Dolphin (11) | ||||||||
| Website | Official website | ||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||
| Built | 1998 | ||||||||
| In use | 1998 – present | ||||||||
| Garrison information | |||||||||
| Current commander | Captain Sean O’Brien | ||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: ACY, ICAO: KACY, FAA LID: ACY, LID: ACY, WMO: 72407 | ||||||||
| Elevation | 22.8 metres (75 ft) AMSL | ||||||||
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| Airfield shared with Atlantic City International Airport Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||||||||
Operations and missions
Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City (CGAS Atlantic City) is located at the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) William J Hughes Technical Center at the Atlantic City International Airport. It is one of two air stations in the Fifth Coast Guard District.
Air Station Atlantic City consists of 11 MH-65D Dolphin helicopters and maintains two MH-65D helicopters in 30-minute response status. Approximately, 250 aviation personnel are staffed at the facility in addition to Coast Guard Reserve personnel and Coast Guard Auxiliary members that augments its Active Duty forces.
CGAS Atlantic City's mission supports a wide range of Coast Guard operations such as search and rescue (SAR), Maritime Law enforcement, port security, Aids to Navigation support and Marine Environmental Protection for both District One and District Five, which includes the coastlines of Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia as well as protecting the interior bays and rivers such as the Chesapeake, Delaware, Hudson and Long Island Sound.
CGAS Atlantic City also provides aircrews and aircraft to the Washington, D.C. area as part of Operation Noble Eagle, a Department of Defense (NORAD) mission to protect the airspace around the nation's capital.[3]
History
CGAS Atlantic City was opened on May 18, 1998. The facility is the newest and largest single airframe unit of the Coast Guard's Air Stations and is a product of merging the former Coast Guard Air Station Brooklyn and Group Air Station Cape May, New Jersey into one unit.
Group Air Station Atlantic City provides mission support services to Atlantic coastal regions from Connecticut to Virginia. Air Station Brooklyn and Air Station Cape May's operational responsibilities overlapped in the region, and so the United States Coast Guard decided that the same level of coverage would be maintained by consolidating both air stations into one facility.
The first life-saving stations along the New Jersey coastline were built in 1849 in response to a deadly string of shipping accidents. The term "Group" was in reference to life saving stations from Barnegat, New Jersey to Cape May, New Jersey. In 1969 Cape May became a Group Air Station when three helicopters were stationed there under command of Group Commander. Originally organized into two separate group offices based in Atlantic City and Cape May, these two command structures were combined in 1982.[4]
References
- "Airport Diagram – Atlantic City Intl (ACY)". Federal Aviation Administration. 10 Sep 2020. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
- Air Station Atlantic City webpage
- "Air Station Atlantic City, NJ:Missions". United States Coast Guard web site.
- Group Atlantic City
