Boats with blue flashing lights.

I am thinking someone on this news group may know what this is, we
have a cruise ship in this morning and early in the morning, before it
was light, there were two small boats around it with very bright
flashing blue strobes lights. As it got light these boat have hung
around, keeping in the area of the cruise ship. I have never seen
these boats before, they don't look like coast guard boats but I
can't figure out what they are. They are much smaller then the life
boats that they ship uses to shuttle people to and from shore. Has
anybody else seen these boats and does anybody know what they are?

Thank much,

Scott

Scott:

Good photo and they looke like CG rigid hull inflatables from a
distance. Where, oh where, are you located?

Aloha

"Scott W" wrote in message
oups.com...

Mark O. Polo wrote:
Scott:

I assume you are in the US so the blue flashing lights should
indicate a
law enforcement vessel ... if not the Coast Guard/Auxiliary then the
local harbor police, perchance.

Aloha
I was kind of thinking the same thing and this seems the most likely. I
don't believe we have any local harbor police, not that I have seen
anyway. It is a bit of an overstatement to call what we have a harbor,
more of a bay with a dock.

These boats are bright orange and pretty hard to miss so I would have
thought I would have seen them before if they had been around.

It was pretty impressive to see them out there this morning, it was so
dark we could not make out what was flashing blue, but it was very
bright.

They seem to be going up to any boat that gets at all close to the
ship.

Here is a link to a photo of them, not read good detail this was taken
from about two miles away.

http://www.pbase.com/konascott/image...7/original.jpg


Scott

Yep, thought so. Those are the fairly new Coast Guard boats that
were recently placed into service following 911. They are only used for
inland waters and harbor patrols. They are armed with machine guns too.
I think they can only hold a crew of four or less due to their size. They
are fast as hell too. They were probably working an exercise where
terrorist would place explosives on a ship's hull. They do these exercises
all the
time in the event something really does happen. They are in all major U.S.
ports now.

"Mike Cordelli" wrote in message
m...
Probably local police boats.


"Scott W" wrote in message
ups.com...
I am thinking someone on this news group may know what this is, we
have a cruise ship in this morning and early in the morning, before it
was light, there were two small boats around it with very bright
flashing blue strobes lights. As it got light these boat have hung
around, keeping in the area of the cruise ship. I have never seen
these boats before, they don't look like coast guard boats but I
can't figure out what they are. They are much smaller then the life
boats that they ship uses to shuttle people to and from shore. Has
anybody else seen these boats and does anybody know what they are?

Thank much,

Scott

It's possible but not very likely since the Coast Guard has these boats with
bright orange hulls and steel superstructures. Local harbor patrols/police
boats are not usually orange in color. AND these small boats do not carry
the diagonal white stripe seen on cutters.

Scott:

Your photo appears to have two 25' CG Defender Class boats similar to
the referenced photo (not all CG vessels sport the racing stripes):

http://www.navy.mil/view_single.asp?id=17684

Aloha

Getting...................BORING!
"Charles" wrote in message
d...
In article
, shoreguy
wrote:

Thanks for the pics - Maybe I am getting old but it sure seems funny to
see
a US military vessel with Honda engines.

Yeah, they are Honda engines all right. Here is a photo I took in
Charleston Harbor of one of the boats from the Galaxy.

http://homepage.mac.com/rail/CoastGuard/PhotoAlbum13.html

--
Charles

In Los Angeles they are definitely the Harbor Police with bright blue
lights.
Steve Hayes

Scott W wrote:
I am thinking someone on this news group may know what this is, we
have a cruise ship in this morning and early in the morning, before
it
was light, there were two small boats around it with very bright
flashing blue strobes lights. As it got light these boat have hung
around, keeping in the area of the cruise ship. I have never seen
these boats before, they don't look like coast guard boats but I
can't figure out what they are. They are much smaller then the life
boats that they ship uses to shuttle people to and from shore. Has
anybody else seen these boats and does anybody know what they are?

Thank much,

Scott

Narcs
DEA
Local cops

I just returned from NCL Sea (ex Houston 3/19) and at Houston two local
law types got off - they were flashing badges which were Fed and local.
They were also very hungover and told the ship's security fellows they
were up all night (and they looked it.) I suspect they were on contract
assignment and spent their free time "in the lounge." They wanted off
early - the ship's cop told them to go back to their rooms and wait the
call just like everyone !

Fomer TA in MN

Narcs
DEA
Local cops

I just returned from NCL Sea (ex Houston 3/19) and at Houston two local
law types got off - they were flashing badges which were Fed and local.
They were also very hungover and told the ship's security fellows they
were up all night (and they looked it.) I suspect they were on contract
assignment and spent their free time "in the lounge." They wanted off
early - the ship's cop told them to go back to their rooms and wait the
call just like everyone !

Fomer TA in MN

So what is your ****ing point ?

Former TA in MN wrote:

Narcs
DEA
Local cops

I just returned from NCL Sea (ex Houston 3/19) and at Houston two local
law types got off - they were flashing badges which were Fed and local.
They were also very hungover and told the ship's security fellows they
were up all night (and they looked it.) I suspect they were on contract
assignment and spent their free time "in the lounge." They wanted off
early - the ship's cop told them to go back to their rooms and wait the
call just like everyone !

Fomer TA in MN