MARINETTE, Wis., Aug. 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Littoral
Combat Ship (LCS) 21, the future USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul, completed acceptance trials in
Lake Michigan. Trials included a
full-power run, maneuverability testing, and surface and air
detect-to-engage demonstrations of the ship's combat system. Major
systems and features were demonstrated, including aviation support,
small boat launch handling and recovery and machinery control and
automation. Now that trials are complete, the ship will undergo
final outfitting and fine-tuning before delivery to the U.S. Navy.
LCS 21 is the eleventh Freedom-variant LCS designed and built by
the Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT)-led industry team and is slated for
delivery to the Navy early next year.
"LCS 21 joins a fleet of sister ships delivering unique
flexibility and capability to the U.S. Navy," said Joe DePietro, Lockheed Martin vice president and
general manager, Small Combatants and Ship Systems.
"Freedom-variant LCS are inherently capable to serve freedom of
navigation, drug interdiction and humanitarian missions, and with
additional capabilities onboarded, they can serve further focused
missions. On LCS 21's acceptance trials, we successfully tested the
ship's maneuverability, automation and core combat capability."
The Freedom-variant LCS has completed four successful
deployments, including LCS 7 (USS Detroit)'s deployment completed
this summer. LCS 7 deployed to the U.S. Southern Command supporting
the Martillo campaign – a multinational effort targeting illicit
trafficking routes in Central American coastal waters.
Regarding LCS' capabilities, U.S. Southern Commander Admiral
Craig Faller recently stated, "LCS
has proven to be an effective and adaptable platform capable of
multiple missions in our area of responsibility. It has become an
end-game enabler for U.S. Coast Guard law enforcement authorities
who disrupt transnational criminal organizations and the smuggling
of deadly narcotics. Adding the LCS to our Enhanced Counter
Narcotics Operation is helping save lives."
Unique among combat ships, the focused-mission LCS is designed
to support mine countermeasures, anti-submarine and surface warfare
missions and is easily adapted to serve future and evolving
missions. The Freedom-variant LCS is:
- Flexible — Forty percent of the hull is easily
reconfigurable, able to integrate Longbow Hellfire Missiles, 30 mm
guns, manned and unmanned vehicles designed to meet today's and
tomorrow's missions.
- Lethal — LCS is standard equipped with Rolling
Airframe Missiles (RAM) and a Mark 110 gun, capable of firing 220
rounds per minute.
- Powerful — LCS has gas turbines, diesel engines and
water jets that together generate 114,000 horsepower making LCS
capable of speeds in excess of 40 knots.
- Automated — LCS has the most efficient staffing of
any combat ship.
"I am pleased to see another successful acceptance trials on
Lake Michigan," said Jan Allman, CEO of Fincantieri Marinette Marine.
"Together with our partners, Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Navy, our
proud shipbuilding team puts in long hours to deliver a proven
warship for the fleet."
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For more information, visit www.lockheedmartin.com/lcs.
About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a
global security and aerospace company that employs approximately
110,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the
research, design, development, manufacture, integration and
sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services.
For additional information, visit our website:
www.lockheedmartin.com.
Please follow @LMNews on Twitter for the latest
announcements and news across the corporation.
About Fincantieri Marinette Marine
Fincantieri is the
leading western shipbuilder with a rich history dating back more
than 230 years, and a track record of building more than 7,000
ships. Fincantieri Marine Group is the American subsidiary of
Fincantieri, and operates three Great Lakes Shipyards: Fincantieri
Marinette Marine, Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding, and Fincantieri ACE
Marine. Fincantieri Marine Group's more than 2,100 steelworkers,
craftsman, engineers and technicians in the United States specialize in the design,
construction and maintenance of merchant ships and government
vessels, including for the United States Navy and Coast Guard.
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 Corporation