Sri Lanka commissions former USCG Hamilton-class cutter

The SLNS Gajabahu (P 626). Photo c/o Sri Lankan Navy.

The Sri Lankan Navy (SLN) has formally commissioned the former US Coast Guard Hamilton-class cutter USCGC Sherman, which it received from the US government as a grant.

The ship, now named SLNS Gajabahu (P 626) entered service on 6 June 2019 at services held in Colombo port and attended by the Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena. 

The former USCGC Sherman was handed over to the SLN on 27 August 2018 in Honolulu, Hawaii, and arrived in Sri Lanka on 12 May 2019.

The ship will be used for patrol and surveillance missions in deep seas around Sri Lanka, while also providing maritime security and search & rescue operations.

She is currently the largest ship in service with the SLN, and will have a crew of 133, including 22 officers. It has a full-load displacement of 3,353 tonnes, an overall beam of 13.1 m, a draught of 6.1 m, and is armed with a 76mm Oto Melara naval gun.

The ship is expected to patrol the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and provide additional security for ships from all nations passing the busy sea-lanes of the Indian Ocean.

The ship is the second former USCG cutter it received from the US, after the former USCGC Courageous, which was granted to Sri Lanka in 2004. 



[1] Jane’s Defence Weekly
[2] Colombo Gazette
[3] Colombo Page