A Coast Guard security team in a pair of 45-foot response boats with machine guns mounted provided an escort for the cruise ship Norwegian Breakaway as she dropped lines and departed from North River Pier 88 just before sundown on Monday. They accompanied Breakaway down to the Narrows and then returned to the Staten Island base.

We don’t usually see this, although the NYPD Harbor Patrol keeps a boat at the cruise terminal and often will be on the water as ships leave, particularly in the warmer months with heavy recreational activity. Breakaway was heading for the Leeward Islands and is home-ported in New York for the winter. I don’t know why this particular departure got an escort, perhaps randomly selected.