Fleet Week Cancelled

Fleet Week Port Everglades 2020 is cancelled due to the worldwide COVID019 (coronavirus) outbreak. We are honored that the U.S. Navy chooses Port Everglades for its annual Fleet Week celebration so we can thank our armed forces for their service to our nation. The Fleet Week Port Everglades Committee, headed by Broward Navy Days, Inc., hopes to reschedule some traditional events later in the year to honor our local military commands. Stay tuned at BrowardNavyDays for future information.

USS Paul Ignatius Commissioning

Port Everglades was honored to serve as the host site for the commissioning of the Navy’s newest ship, the USS Paul Ignatius (DDG 117), which was commissioned during a ceremony held at Cruise Terminal 4 on July 27, 2019.

DDG 117 is the 67th Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, and the 31st DDG 51 class destroyer built by Huntington Ingalls Industries. It is the first warship named for Paul Ignatius who served as U. S. Secretary of the Navy under President Lyndon B. Johnson from 1967 to 1969. Ignatius previously served with honor as a commissioned Lieutenant in the Navy during World War II.

USS Paul Ignatius is homeported at Naval Station Mayport, Florida. 

Navy & Coast Guard

Broward County and its Port Everglades have a long history of welcoming members of the Armed Forces into our community. The Port served as a military base for the U.S. Navy during World War II, and has been the "liberty" port of choice for the U.S. Navy for many years.

US Coast Guard

On August 3, 2012, Port Everglades had the honor of serving as the host site for the commissioning of the USCG Richard Etheridge, the U.S. Coast Guard's second Sentinel Class Response Cutters. 

The cutter was named after Richard Etheridge, the first African-American to command a life-saving station. Etheridge led the Pea Island, NC, crew in a daring rescue operation that saved the entire crew of the schooner E.S. Newman, which had become grounded in a treacherous storm in 1896.

On August 7, 1975, the  U.S. Coast Guard Station Fort Lauderdale, located directly across from Port Everglades, was formally commissioned. Its primary missions are search and rescue and drug interdiction. The phone number for U.S. Coast Guard Station Fort Lauderdale is 954-927-1611.

U.S. Navy

Vessels commissioned at Port Everglades, include:

• USS Leyete Gulf (1987)
• USS Cole (1996)
• USS Higgins (1999)
• USS Bainbridge (2005)
• USS  Jason Dunham (2010)

International navy fleets from Great Britain, Uruguay, Brazil, France, Germany and NATO also call on Port Everglades.

Operation Clear Channel

The U.S. Coast Guard has kicked-off an initiative to keep navigational channels clear for commercial traffic such as cargo, petroleum and cruise ships. Operation Clear Channel was prompted by the increase in incidents where recreational boats blocked or hindered the safe passage of large ships in and out of Port Everglades, along with other major South Florida seaports.

Boaters on vessels less than 65 feet or sailing vessels are reminded that it is their responsibility to clear the passage for vessels that can only navigate within a narrow channel, according to Navigation Rule #9. Boaters violating this rule could be subject to a fine of up to $5,000 and/or seizure of the violator’s vessel.

To learn more about Operation Clear Channel, CLICK HERE.

Visit uscgboating.org for boating safety information. Call 1-800-336-BOAT (2628) or visit cgaux.org/boatinged to register for a Coast Guard Auxiliary boating course.