How Weather Shapes Every Coast Guard Mission

While most people take shelter from a storm, the U.S. Coast Guard is gearing up to head straight into it.

Recent rescues during historic flooding in Texas have only reinforced that reality, highlighting the need for Coast Guard members to be prepared for any weather, any time.

Cmdr. Dan DeAngelo knows this well. “The Coast Guard’s pretty unique,” he said. “There are oftentimes we are the only people out there on the cutter, on the surface, or in the air, where nobody in their right mind would be, because someone had a really, really bad day and then they had to go get rescued.”

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In an interview detailing the immense impact weather has on Coast Guard operations, Cmdr. DeAngelo broke down just how deeply forecasts, storm systems, and even subtle weather shifts affect every decision the service makes. “We typically say we’re a very reactionary service, which is the nature of the work, from the search and rescue aspect of it,” he said. “And weather certainly plays a large role in that.”

From routine patrols to high-stakes rescues, weather planning is at the heart of it all. “There’s your local acute weather patterns that kind of flow through,” he explained, “and some of the Coast Guard units may be operating ongoing SAR [search and rescue] cases, law enforcement cases, what have you.”

(MORE: Coast Guard Reveals Top Boating Mistakes)

Mission planning often includes adjusting for better visibility or storm timing. “I might need to take more fuel and go farther, or, delay this case because we’ll have better search conditions on the backside.”

Weather doesn’t just affect scheduling; it determines what assets are even capable of being used. “We do operate all-weather aircraft, both rotary and fixed wing,” DeAngelo said. “We train all-weather, we train day, night operations, rain, sleet, snow, and so forth, but there are safety margins that even we contend with.”

That’s when the Coast Guard layers in surface teams to fill in the gaps when air operations aren’t possible. “Surface assets typically cover over during that time frame when an aviation asset can't be out there,” he explained.

(MORE: Coast Guard Crews Reflect On Texas Flood Rescues)

Coast Guard aviators are trained to expect the unexpected, from blowing snow in Alaska to zero-visibility fog in the South. “I’ve been in conditions where I’ve been in severe icing, almost flaming my engines out in the aircraft... I’ve been struck by lightning, I’ve been hit by hail" DeAngelo recalls.

Every environment has its own hazards. “You have hot summers and cold winters and the constant march of west-to-east weather,” DeAngelo said. In the summer, they adapt schedules around storm timing. “Heating in the morning, a lot of heavy thunderstorm activity in the afternoon,” he noted, adding that both the afloat and the aviation divisions move their staff shifts around accordingly.

(MORE: Man Survives Hurricane Clinging To Cooler)

Crosswinds are another regular challenge. “Crosswind trainings are something that we harp on a lot in the Coast Guard because we operate out of locations where prevailing winds can come at us from any angle. I’ve had some pretty gnarly crosswind landings,” DeAngelo admits, “but the mission dictates to get in there.”

In those moments, it comes down to training and trust. “Thankfully, through some of the training that we have and then the crew utilization, and obviously, the aircraft we operate, are able to do that.”

DeAngelo summed it up clearly: weather isn’t just a factor in Coast Guard operations, it’s a constant presence. “Whether it’s hail, rain, mist, fog, what have you,” he said, “Mother Nature is something not to be trifled with.”

Weather.com lead editor Jenn Jordan explores how weather and climate weave through our daily lives, shape our routines and leave lasting impacts on our communities.