Here’s Why the US Military Needs a Seaplane
21st August 2026
The United States military hasn’t operated a seaplane, or amphibious flying boat, since the Coast Guard retired the HU-16 Albatross in 1983. For 73 years, this kind of aircraft had been essential for everything from search and rescue to resupply. With the vast expanses of the Pacific theater in mind, an argument can be made that the versatile seaplanes of yesteryear should return to their former glory.
United States Pacific Command is made up of over one hundred million square miles of territory, which is over half the Earth. The majority of that is water. This puts a premium on land, especially airfields. Despite technological leaps that make crossing thousands of miles faster, and arguably easier, aviators still face some of the same hurdles today as they did back in World War II.
As leaders plan for a potential fight in the region, new doctrine like the Marines’ Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations and the Army’s Multi-Domain Operations all consider the challenge of maintaining logistics for small and dispersed teams in austere conditions, with little infrastructure for traditional cargo aircraft or watercraft.
The situation looks even more dire when you consider that existing airfields and ports would be high-value targets in the opening moments of a conflict, further complicating logistics.