MARINETTE, Wis., Aug. 21, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Lockheed Martin
(NYSE: LMT)-led industry team successfully completed the future USS
Little Rock's (LCS 9) Builder's Trials on Aug. 17. The ship's sea trials were completed in
Lake Michigan after a successful
set of demonstrations which saw the fifth LCS 9 hit speeds over 40
knots.
"The Freedom-variant LCS plays a critical role in the U.S.
Navy's fleet, and we are committed to getting Little Rock and her
highly capable sister ships into combatant commanders' hands as
quickly as possible," said Joe
North, vice president of Littoral Ships and Systems. "These
are complex vessels, and I'm proud of our workforce, who have the
knowledge and expertise it takes to design, build and test these
American warships."
Sea trials are designed to test the ship's performance under a
variety of operating conditions. During the builder's trials, the
industry team successfully demonstrated reliability and performance
improvements on the ship's propulsion system. All future
Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ships will incorporate these
improvements.
The Lockheed Martin-led team is now preparing Little Rock for
acceptance trials in the coming weeks, when the U.S. Navy's Board
of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) will conduct inspections and
witness final demonstrations before the ship is delivered to the
Navy this year.
Named in honor of the patriotic and hardworking citizens of
Little Rock, LCS 9 will be the second U.S. Navy ship to bear the
name of Arkansas' largest
city.
The Lockheed Martin-led industry team is currently in full-rate
production of the Freedom-variant of the LCS, and has delivered
four ships to the U.S. Navy to date. The future USS Little Rock is
one of eight ships in various stages of construction at Fincantieri
Marinette Marine, with one more in long-lead production.
The team is on track to complete sea trials for LCS 9 and LCS 11
this year and deliver each ship shortly thereafter. The remaining
hulls under contract will be delivered to the U.S. Navy at a rate
of two ships per year.
The Lockheed Martin-led LCS team is comprised of shipbuilder
Fincantieri Marinette Marine, naval architect Gibbs & Cox, and
more than 800 suppliers in 42 states. Costing less than a third of
a brand new Arleigh Burke-class
destroyer, the Littoral Combat Ship is the Navy's most affordable
surface combatant shipbuilding program and the ideal platform to
grow the U.S. Navy fleet quickly and affordably.
The Freedom-variant's steel monohull design is based on a
proven, resilient design recognized for its stability and
reliability.
For additional information, visit our website:
www.lockheedmartin.com/lcs
Click here to view video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2agoHTgAKA
About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a
global security and aerospace company that employs approximately
97,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research,
design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of
advanced technology systems, products and services.
About Fincantieri Marinette Marine
Founded in 1942,
Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM) is located on the Menominee
River flowage into Green Bay. The
largest shipyard in the Midwest, FMM has delivered more than 1,300
vessels to the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, and commercial
customers, including the technologically advanced Littoral Combat
Ship Freedom variant for the U.S. Navy. In 2008, FMM along with
several sister shipyards also based in the Great Lakes region,
became part of Fincantieri, one of the world's largest shipbuilding
groups and number one by diversification and innovation, with
almost 21,000 employees, of whom approximately 7,700 in
Italy, 21 shipyards in 4
continents. Fincantieri operates in the United States through its subsidiary
Fincantieri Marine Group, serving both civilian and government
customers. Over the past five years, Fincantieri invested more than
$100 million in both capital
infrastructure and its resources to support FMM's transformation
into what is now one of the best shipyards in the United States. Employing approximately
1,500 employees, today FMM is a state-of-the-art, full service new
construction shipyard.
About Gibbs & Cox
Gibbs & Cox, the nation's
leading independent maritime solutions firm specializing in naval
architecture, marine engineering and design, is headquartered in
Arlington, Virginia. The company,
founded in 1929, has provided designs for nearly 80 percent of the
current U.S. Navy surface combatant fleet; approaching 7,000 naval
and commercial ships have been built to Gibbs & Cox
designs.
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SOURCE Lockheed Martin