Chapter 1, The King of SAR Summary

Red Wegener is the oldest lieutenant commander in the United States Coast Guard. He has the reputation of being the "King of Search-and-Rescue" missions (SAR) and is picking up his new ship, Panache. The ship is a total mess and blocked from leaving the dock by a broken crane, but within ten days Wegener extricates the cutter and takes it to Baltimore to finish its outfitting. In seven weeks, under Red Wegener's leadership, the Panache is on its way to Mobile, Alabama to take up duties.

Their first mission is to check on a yacht, under American flag, whose owner is late returning to Mobile from his cruise south; the sixty-two foot yacht has been spotted by a routine air patrol. They intercept the Empire Builder and though the yacht tries to escape, the coast...