International Program

Deepwater Systems/Capabilities | Documents | Updates | Acronyms

The global advocacy arm of the Integrated Deepwater System Program (IDS) is the Deepwater International Office. Under the leadership of Rear Admiral (RADM) Patrick M. Stillman, the Program Executive Officer of IDS, Deepwater International is the critical link between the overall U.S. Coast Guard acquisition effort and the international community.

Deepwater International aims to promote the international market potential of Deepwater systems with the ultimate goal of achieving heightened cooperation and interoperability with Coast Guard allies, increased efficiency of acquisition, and worldwide visibility of the technological maritime superiority that Deepwater will bring to the 21st century.

The Deepwater International staff is engaged in a continuing informational effort to educate prospective foreign partners and the security assistance community as to what Deepwater entails and how they might benefit from some form of engagement in the program. The Deepwater staff also studies potential foreign markets for Deepwater systems. To this end, the staff has worked closely with defense attaches and security assistance officers, briefed numerous foreign military officials on the possibilities that the program offers and has taken the Deepwater message to various international expositions and conferences such as Euronaval and Exponaval.

In addition to promoting IDS through foreign military sales (FMS), the Deepwater International Office has also focused on building partnerships throughout the security assistance community. For instance, the Deepwater Office has been working with the Director of Security Assistance and Arms Transfers within the U.S. Department of State. In the U.S. Department of Defense, Deepwater International has opened communications channels with the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, participated in the Shipboard Systems Planning Forum organized by the U.S. Navy International Programs Office (IPO), and presented Deepwater briefings at several security assistance officer conferences (SAO). Lastly, with regard to the U.S. Commerce Department, Deepwater International has signed an agreement with the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), under which that bureau will help promote sales of Deepwater equipment to navies around the world.

Working closely with the Deepwater International Office is the Integrated Coast Guard System (ICGS), which is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Corporation and Northrop Grumman Ship Systems. On June 25, 2002, the U.S. Coast Guard awarded the IDS contract to ICGS with the primary goal of modernizing and replacing the U.S. Coast Guard's major cutters and aircraft, including their supporting communications, sensors, and logistics systems, transforming the current fleet of aging assets into an integrated, interoperable network-centric system. ICGS provides IDS and Deepwater International the industrial knowledge and business expertise needed to conduct FMS effectively and successfully. Because the Deepwater Program utilizes an innovative Mission-Based Performance Acquisition approach, it has teamed with both of these industry leaders to provide maximum operational effectiveness at the lowest total ownership cost.