Polar Star completes final phase of service life extension program

Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star undocking at Mare Island Dry Dock in Vallejo, California. U.S. Coast Guard photo.

Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star completed the fifth and final phase of its five-year service life extension program (SLEP) on Sept. 17 at Mare Island Dry Dock LLC in Vallejo, California. The cutter departed the San Francisco Bay Area on Sept. 20 for its homeport in Seattle. 

The SLEP, a key initiative within the Coast Guard’s In-Service Vessel Sustainment (ISVS) Program, has extended Polar Star’s service life by modernizing targeted systems, including propulsion, communication and machinery control systems. Concurrent with the SLEP activities, crews performed other significant maintenance to ensure the cutter remains capable of operating in some of the most extreme environmental conditions on Earth.   

SLEP work on Polar Star was conducted in phases to align with the cutter’s operational commitments, such as its annual Antarctic deployment in support of Operation Deep Freeze. The fifth and final annual phase began on March 30, 2025, focusing on the following systems:  

• Heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems refurbishments were conducted in two remaining zones with ventilation trunks, fans and heaters to improve air circulation and maintain a comfortable living environment for the ship’s crew during extended deployments. 

• Gyro repeaters were recapitalized from “synchro drive” to “data-driven” systems to ensure these critical pieces of navigation equipment are updated to modern standards, enabling safe and more reliable navigation of the cutter. 

• Twenty-nine ancillary pumps and motors, associated operational panels, power supplies and piping were recapitalized to support auxiliary and main propulsion systems throughout the cutter with modern supportable units. 

In addition, personnel from Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore recapitalized sewage pumps, tank level indicators and control panels, improving system reliability during extended deployments to ensure the crew can successfully monitor and manage sewage capacity while the cutter is executing its missions in ice. 

Kenneth King, program manager for the ISVS program, commented on the milestone: “An outstanding team effort! I am tremendously proud of the In-Service Vessel Sustainment staff, the Long Range Enforcer Product Line, Resident Inspection Office Seattle and Coast Guard Yard in their significant efforts completing Phase 5. Our dedicated professionals continue to exemplify our service’s core values to ensure Polar Star meets its multifaced missions in the polar regions until the arrival of the polar security cutter fleet.”   

Polar Star is the nation’s sole operational heavy polar icebreaker. To address emerging geopolitical challenges and increased human activity in the Arctic and Antarctic regions, the Coast Guard is investing in polar security cutters (PSCs) that will sustain the service’s heavy icebreaking capabilities. On April 30, 2025, the Coast Guard received approval from the Department of Homeland Security for full production of the first PSC. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act provides funds to complete the first and second PSCs and begin construction of a third. 

For more information: In-Service Vessel Sustainment Program page and Polar Security Cutter Program page