Guardians,

Following certifications by me that LORAN C is not required for maritime navigation and the Secretary of Homeland Security that the LORAN C infrastructure is not required as a back up to Global Positioning System (GPS) and required public notification in the Federal Register, LORAN C operations as a system will cease operations on February 8, 2010 in U.S. waters. This will mark the end of an era. For many years this system provided precision navigation services but has now been overtaken by the more capable and precise GPS.

The decision to terminate Loran C was not taken lightly and was thoroughly reviewed beforehand. We determined last fall that termination of Loran C would not adversely affect navigation because there are sufficient aids to navigation in place to serve the mariner should GPS service be unavailable for any reason.

With the assistance of the Coast Guard Auxiliary and associated Coast Guard support commands, we have begun a public outreach campaign as we start a phased and orderly decommissioning of the twenty-four stations still operating.

There will be few exceptions to the termination. For example, five LORAN stations which are part of international agreements with Canada and the Russian Federation will remain in operation until those agreements can be terminated, probably well into 2010. Additionally, we continue to work with the FAA in Alaska to ensure all of their communication transmitters are operating with GPS timing prior to all signal shutdowns in the area.

Guardians have stood the watch at these stations for over 50 years providing navigational services for mariners and aviators. I proudly served as the Commanding Officer of LORAN Station Lampang, Thailand (1974-75) and my father helped build a LORAN A station in the Philippines during the Korean War. The history of LORAN is the history of Guardians serving in some of the most remote locations and harshest environments on the Earth.

We have enjoyed a close relationship with the communities located near our LORAN units. We have valued those friendships and will strive to honor those relationships by working to minimize any adverse impacts the site closures have on our neighbors. Equally important, we will assist those members of the Coast Guard who are in transition to new assignments.

We will always recognize those who have served at LORAN Stations with admiration and gratitude.

ADM A