Richard Snyder is a cutter—one of the U.S. Coast Guard’s patrol boats. It has a variety of missions: it keeps ports, waterways, and coasts secure, patrols fisheries, intercepts smugglers, and performs search-and-rescue operations.
Supporting a crew of 24, Richard Snyder embarks on missions lasting up to five days, over distances of almost 3,452 miles. It is armed with a remote-controlled autocannon, four machine guns, and light arms, and it has a ramp for launching and retrieving its high-speed boat—which it can do without coming to a stop first. The high-speed boat is deployed for rescues, interceptions, and inspections.
Richard Snyder is the 27th cutter in the Sentinel class, otherwise known as fast-response cutters. These cutters are each named after a hero in the U.S. Coast Guard. Richard Snyder served as a member of Navy Beach Party Number Six during World War II. On May 27, 1944, as the United States attacked Japanese forces on Biak Island, a landing party was bombarded with heavy hand grenade fire from Japanese troops hiding in caves. Using hand grenades of his own, Snyder eliminated the threat. Because of his initiative and resourcefulness, the landing party was able to deliver troops and vital supplies without suffering any casualties. Snyder received the Silver Star for his actions.
See Richard Snyder on Pier 86 during the Museum’s Fleet Week festivities.
It will be open for free tours from Thursday, May 24, through Monday, May 28, 10:00am-3:00pm.
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