55 Fall 2025 Proceedings foreign waters, Southeast Alaska is a destination in its own right. Most cruises in this region take place within U.S. Coast Guard jurisdiction, carefully monitored by the sector’s prevention staff. The Prevention Department’s vessel inspectors, facility inspectors, investigators, and waterways man- agement experts all work together to keep cruise pas- sengers safe. This takes the form of examining cruise ships, inspecting local tour boats that cater to cruise pas- sengers, investigating accidents, enforcing port security standards, maintaining the navigation aids that mark safe passages, and evaluating the navigational risks posed by expanding port infrastructure projects. This article will briefly touch upon each of these functions, performed by a team of approximately 50 people based in Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan, and Petersburg, Alaska. Maintaining The Aids to Navigation System Many Southeast Alaskan cruises begin in Seattle, Washington, or Vancouver, British Columbia. When the ships cross north from Canadian waters at Dixon Entrance, their bridge officers rely on a complex system of U.S. navigational aids. Buoys, day boards, and light- houses help guide ships safely between the innumerable rocks and shoals that make the Alexander Archipelago’s seascapes simultaneously treacherous and stunning. Two sector subunits have the primary responsibility of maintaining nearly half of Southeast Alaska’s 855 aids. Aids-to-Navigation Team Sitka services 114 aids, includ- ing many accessible only via helicopter. CGC Elderberry, a 71-year-old, 65-foot inland buoy tender, services 285 aids. The rest are maintained by larger buoy tenders reporting to the sector’s parent unit, the Arctic District. The work is physically demanding, dirty, and essential to the safety of ships sailing along the sinuous shores of the Inside Passage, which account for more than a fifth of the total U.S. coastline as measured by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Ensuring Facility Security For northbound cruisers, Ketchikan is often a first port-of-call; 642 cruise ships arrived in 2024, making it Smooth Sailing Prevention’s role in the Southeast Alaskan cruise industry by CdR bRieRley ostRandeR Chief of Prevention Sector Southeast Alaska U.S. Coast Guard A cruise through the dramatic, glacier-cut fjords of Southeast Alaska’s Inside Passage is a bucket list item for many travelers, and the popularity of this comfortable way to access the region’s epic wil- derness is rapidly growing. At the peak of the April to October cruise season, upwards of 30 cruise ships per day navigate these waters, with the largest ships capable of carrying more than 6,000 people. But during their Alaskan voyages, few passengers are aware of the quiet, behind-the-scenes role U.S. Coast Guard Sector Southeast Alaska’s Prevention Department plays in promoting their safety and security. Unlike many other U.S. cruise ports that serve as departure points for adventures in CGC Elderberry crewmembers renew a day board. Coast Guard personnel assigned to the 65-foot inland buoy tender service 285 of Southeast Alaska’s 855 aids to navigation. Coast Guard photo Critical Operations
