 The transfer allowed the Coast Guard to take a more active role in the war and concentrated government administration of the merchant marine in one agency.However, just as the transfer removed the merchant marine training role from the Coast Guard, the service assumed the role of licensing seamen and inspecting merchant vessels.The Atlantic Ocean was a major strategic battle zone during World War II ("Battle of the Atlantic") and when Germany declared war on the US, the East Coast offered easy pickings for German U-Boats (referred to as the "Second happy time").