US Mulls Leasing Icebreaker To For Arctic While Building New Ship - Coast Guard Chief

The United States is discussing plans to lease a heavy icebreaker to increase its presence in the Arctic while building a ship of its own - a process that could take up to a decade, Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Karl Schultz said on Wednesday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th May, 2021) The United States is discussing plans to lease a heavy icebreaker to increase its presence in the Arctic while building a ship of its own - a process that could take up to a decade, Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Karl Schultz said on Wednesday.

"We have had some ongoing discussions here given that to build a large ice breaker, the polar security class ship, that can be about a ten-year project," Schultz told reporters during a virtual news conference. "We've compressed that down and are trying to accomplish that in six, seven years. Leasing could bridge the gap."

Schultz pointed out that the United States has a single heavy icebreaker, the 45-year-old Polar Star, which spends much of each year servicing the Antarctic on behalf of the National Science Foundation.