trimaran naval ships

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The US Navy’s hi-tech war trimarans are finally going up against China

The Chinese navy, currently the biggest in the world by count of warships , just keeps growing. Meanwhile the US Navy – the world’s second most numerous fleet – is struggling to grow at all, to say nothing of getting bigger fast enough to keep pace with the Chinese fleet.

And there’s one major reason why. The USN spent 15 years pouring billions of dollars into buying, though seldom deploying, a numerous class of fast, shallow-water warships that it has now decided are too fragile, too unreliable and too lightly armed for a major war.

Today the US Navy is decommissioning barely-used Littoral Combat Ships as fast as the newest vessels in the class, having been paid for years ago, belatedly come into service. It’s the military-industrial equivalent of treading water.

But American fleet leaders know they have a problem. They know they must find some way to make the majority of the $500-million-apiece LCSs useful in a major war. If the ships are actually useful, the fleet might be able to justify keeping them for their full 25-year planned service lives instead of prematurely sending them to the breakers.

Retaining a couple of dozen LCSs through the 2030s and 2040s should help the fleet jumpstart its long-stalled plan to grow from today’s 290 front-line warships to 350 ships in two decades or so. The Chinese navy would still have more ships, overall, but the American navy might take comfort in the likelihood that its own ships would be bigger and more heavily-armed, on average.

The LCS program originated in the 1990s and began spending real money, and building ships, in the early 2000s – an era where land warfare dominated Pentagon planning. The idea was to equip the US fleet with 50 or more vessels that could move fast in shallow, near-shore littorals. Their weaponry would be light; in the place of heavy missile batteries, they’d have drones.

American naval leaders bizarrely chose to pay two different companies – Lockheed Martin and Austal USA – to each build their totally different LCS designs, both around 400 feet long. The Lockheed design, based on a huge luxury yacht, had a single hull. The Austal design was a three-hull trimaran.

Both LCS types turned out to be more expensive and more complex than the US Navy anticipated. And the Lockheed version also suffered serious problems with its complex engines. Perhaps more seriously, fleet leaders soon regretted their decision to omit heavy weaponry from the lightweight vessels.

Unlike a destroyer or cruiser, an LCS cannot fire long-range missiles at enemy ships or ground forces; it can’t shoot down incoming enemy missiles from a hundred miles away. An LCS depends on other, better-equipped ships for protection from a high-tech foe.

In a major war with China, the LCSs would be a costly liability. So it came as no surprise when, starting around a decade ago, the US Navy first cut back on the number of LCSs it planned to buy, and also began decommissioning the oldest ships in the class – even though none were more than 15 years old. That’s young by naval standards.

Today the LCS class numbers 35 ships either in commission or under construction. Nine have already decommissioned , or should do so next year. While the class shrinks, some admirals and captains are doing their best to make the remaining ships work.

They’re adding containerized anti-ship missiles and air-defense missiles, organizing better maintenance and support practices and developing new tactics that could see some LCSs sail independently at the forward edge of larger fleet formations, sticking close to shore in order to hide from enemy forces.

The Austal-built trimarans, which have proved more reliable than the Lockheed-built monohull LCSs, benefit the most from these developments. And it’s these ships the US Navy is pushing forward into the western Pacific, where a naval war with China is a real possibility.

Admiral Sam Paparo, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, set a goal of deploying at least six LCSs into the western Pacific at the same time by 2025. His sailors achieved the goal two years early. “That’s a Herculean effort,” Paparo told reporters in early November.

Around the same time, the US Navy was wrapping up a major test that added the fleet’s best multi-role missile – the Standard Missile 6 – to a trimaran LCS by packing the missile into a metal box and bolting it to the ship’s large helicopter deck. Cued by radar, an SM-6 can hit ships, aircraft, missiles and even targets on land from a distance of at least 130 miles.

The improvised SM-6 armament is inefficient. US Navy destroyers fire SM-6s from vertical cells that take up minimal deck space; that’s why a destroyer might carry nearly 100 missiles like the SM-6. An LCS might be able to carry just a few SM-6s before the missiles, which are stored horizontally before they’re fired, make it impossible for the ship to launch and land its helicopter.

Which might be why American fleet leaders aren’t committing to a sweeping rearmament of the trimarans. Instead, the SM-6 test “will inform continued testing, evaluation and integration of containerized weapons systems on afloat platforms,” the US Navy stated.

The test is at least evidence that the US Navy is serious about doing something to make its dozens of LCSs useful in a major war. If the effort fails, the American fleet might decide to cut its losses, decommission the under-armed ships despite many of them being practically brand new – and accept that the cuts prevent the fleet from growing for several years.

Meanwhile the Chinese navy is growing by a dozen or so ships a year.

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Trimaran warships are on the horizon

By Emma Young

11 February 1995

A TRIMARAN warship, with three narrow hulls, would need only half the power of conventional vessels to achieve the same top speed, according to its British designers. Vosper Thornycroft, a shipbuilding company based in Portsmouth, will unveil a model of a 1500-tonne trimaran frigate next month at the Idex defence exhibition in the United Arab Emirates.

The triple-hull design is widely used for sailing vessels, and a trimaran holds the world record for the distance sailed in 24 hours. But there has been little previous interest in developing powered versions.

Trimarans have a slender central hull that creates much less drag in the water than a single, wide hull. This reduces the power needed to drive it. Two narrow hulls, called outriggers, are connected to the central hull by a crossdeck. The outriggers make the vessel very stable. According to Robert Mulligan, technical director of Vosper Thornycroft, the difference in drag means that a trimaran warship could travel at over 55 kilometres per hour using only half the power required by a monohull to achieve the same speed.

The crossdeck of a trimaran also increases the available deck area, providing more room for weapons and other equipment. Vosper plans to make its trimaran 18 metres wide, while the beam of a comparable monohull would be 11.5 metres. The wider deck will allow the trimaran warship’s heliport to be sited farther from the edge of the vessel. This would enable helicopters to operate in heavier seas.

Mulligan admits that the design does have one disadvantage: “You need a bigger dock than for a conventional frigate – we would have to look at mooring facilities.”

The Naval Architecture Research Group at University College London recently investigated the feasibility of powered trimaran vessels. The researchers found no technical reason why there should not be naval trimaran frigates and suggested that the outriggers might even provide significant protection from sea-skimming missiles.

The design of a trimaran’s outriggers is a major factor in the stability of the ship and this gives trimarans a further advantage. Changes in the weight and distribution of a ship’s payload often require modifications to the ship in order to maintain its stability. Because a trimaran’s outriggers are relatively easy to modify, the triple-hulled ships are simple to alter when the payload changes. Mike Porter of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects says: “It’s an interesting design. We’re certainly keen on the concept and think it’s something the Navy should be looking at.”

Before a full-scale ship can be built, the Vosper Thornycroft team will carry out further checks on the hydrodynamics of the design, and measure the stresses on the outriggers. “We could be in a position to sign a contract with a customer in 12 months,” says Mulligan. “By the year 2000, there’s no reason why there could not be a trimaran warship in the water.”

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Trending topics, navy quietly decommissions littoral combat ship independence.

The namesake of the Navy’s Independence-class of Littoral Combat Ships left the fleet after 11 years in a small pier-side ceremony in San Diego on Thursday, according to the service.

USS Independence (LCS-2) was ceremonially decommissioned at an event not open to the public “due to public health safety and restrictions,” reads a release from Littoral Combat Squadron 1.

In a speech, commander Naval Surface Forces, Vice Adm. Roy Kitchener praised the crew for helping the Navy refine how it uses the class of ships.

“Without their efforts and experiences, the ship class would not be where it is today with six ships deployed throughout the world. Those improvements, made largely in part due to this crew’s experience and input, will continue to carry the LCS class into the future,” he said in a speech at the pier.

Independence , based in California, was scheduled to formally leave the fleet on July 31, according to a memo reviewed in May by USNI News . It’s been used as a testbed for mission package development and leaving the fleet well ahead of its expected 25-year service life.

The 3,000-ton Independence and sister-ship USS Coronado (LCS-4) were the first two Independence-class trimaran ships built to compete for the Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship contract. The ships competed along with the Freedom-class steel monohull LCS USS Freedom (LCS-1) and USS Fort Worth (LCS-3) before the Navy elected to build both versions of LCS.

Freedom is scheduled to leave the fleet in September.

As part of the FY 2021 budget , the Navy said it was too expensive to upgrade the first four ships for a new era of “great power competition” and sought to decommission the quartet.

“They’re not unimportant, just in great power competition they were less important – so that’s why we took those savings and applied it to other areas,” then-Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Budget Rear Adm. Randy Crites said in 2020 .

CNO Adm. Mike Gilday told USNI News in an interview it would take $2.5 billion to upgrade the first four ships – money he would rather put toward the emerging Constellation-class frigate (FFG-62) program.

In the current FY 2022 budget submission , the Navy is asking to cut four LCS – Coronado , Fort Worth, USS  Detroit  (LCS-7) and USS  Little Rock  (LCS-9).

The Navy commissioned  Forth Worth  in 2012 and  Coronado  in 2014. Detroit commissioned in 2016 and Little Rock in 2017.

The Navy’s plan to divest the hulls to free up money to invest in future ships or emerging weapons like hypersonics has met with widespread criticism in Congress.

“I’m not buying it,” Rep Elaine Luria (D-Va.) told USNI News in May . “We need to look at what we have today and how we can use it and how we can use it most efficiently. The idea of divesting of current platforms that still have usable service life in order to invest in something that we might develop the technology for in the future – paired with our poor track record on [developing new] platforms – just makes absolutely no sense to me.”

Independence will join the Navy’s reserve fleet.

Sam LaGrone

Sam LaGrone is the editor of USNI News. He has covered legislation, acquisition and operations for the Sea Services since 2009 and spent time underway with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps and the Canadian Navy. Follow @samlagrone

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Sea Hunter: inside the US Navy’s autonomous submarine tracking vessel

US defence research agency DARPA has developed Sea Hunter, a prototype unmanned submarine tracking vessel with the ability to autonomously patrol the seas for months on end at a fraction of current costs. Julian Turner investigates what this could mean for conventional submarine warfare.

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Even by US military standards, the excitement surrounding Sea Hunter, a prototype unmanned submarine tracking vessel developed at a cost of $20m by US defence research agency DARPA, is startling. Variously described as “a highly autonomous unmanned ship that could revolutionise US maritime operations” and “a new vision of naval surface warfare”, the drone was developed through the agency’s Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ASW ACTUV) programme.

The Class III unmanned surface vessel (USV) has the potential to traverse thousands of kilometres of open ocean for months without a single crew member aboard and at a fraction of current costs – estimates range from $15,000-$20,000 a day compared with $700,000 a day to operate a destroyer. According to DARPA, Sea Hunter could ultimately lead to a whole new class of ocean-going vessel and eradicate the need for larger manned warships, transforming conventional submarine warfare.

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“ACTUV represents a new vision of naval surface warfare that trades small numbers of very capable, high-value assets for large numbers of commoditized, simpler platforms that are more capable in the aggregate,” said Fred Kennedy, director of DARPA’s Tactical Technology Office (TTO).

“The US military has talked about the strategic importance of replacing ‘king’ and ‘queen’ pieces on the maritime chessboard with lots of ‘pawns’, and ACTUV is a first step toward doing exactly that.”

Testing times: putting Sea Hunter through its paces

Measuring 132ft in length and capable of 27 knots, Sea Hunter is the world’s largest unscrewed ship and is designed as a trimaran, the name given to a multihull vessel comprising a main hull and two smaller outrigger hulls (or ‘floats’) attached to it with lateral beams.

A successful joint test with DARPA’s Towed Airborne Lift of Naval Systems – meaning Sea Hunter could handle communications relays, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance sensor packages – was followed by open-water testing of the vessel’s sensing and autonomy suites.

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In 2017 three tests took place to integrate the suites and use them to comply with International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea during operationally realistic scenarios. In August 2017, Sea Hunter conducted at-sea tests with a mine countermeasures (MCM) payload. DARPA and the Office of Naval Research (ONR) also conducted tests in order to prove a key design element: the vessel’s flexibility to handle diverse missions by switching among modular payloads.

DARPA completed its ASW ACTUV project in January and transferred the demonstration vessel to ONR the following month. ONR will develop the prototype as the Medium Displacement Unmanned Surface Vehicle (MDUSV) and test Sea Hunter’s automated payload and sensor data processing, new mission-specific autonomous behaviours, and autonomous coordination among multiple USVs.

“ACTUV’s move from DARPA to ONR marks a significant milestone in developing large-scale USV technology and autonomy capabilities,” stated TTO programme manager Alexander Walan. “Our collaboration with ONR has brought closer to reality a future fleet in which both manned warships and capable large unmanned vessels complement each other to accomplish diverse, evolving missions.”

“We are already working on autonomous control, a challenging area that is key to maturing MDUSV and delivering it to the fleet,” added Robert Brizzolara, ONR programme officer for MDUSV.

Multiple missions: submarine tracking and mine detection

Pending test results, Sea Hunter could enter service for the US Navy in 2018 in a variety of roles. The drone’s stated purpose is to locate, track enemy and engage submarines, primarily using a high frequency fixed sonar array, but MCM testing suggests mine countermeasures could be an option.

“Both roles make good sense for an unmanned system such as Sea Hunter,” writes Joseph Trevithick in The Drive. “A group of MDUSVs could more readily search a wider area for both hostile subs and mines and similar underwater hazards.

“The drone boats could also scout well ahead of manned ships for the enemy… and get close to particularly high value assets, such as aircraft carriers or amphibious assault ships.”

Submarines pose a growing threat to the US Navy’s surface ships. Air-independent propulsion technology means diesel-electric submarines are quieter, and therefore harder for sonar to detect. They can also remain submerged for significantly longer periods of time than their predecessors. As DARPA’s Fred Kennedy alluded to, smaller unmanned boats would also be more cost-effective than relying entirely on larger warships, aircraft or aerial drones to search for and counter threats.

Able to endure up to 90 days at sea without a crew and with an estimated range of 10,000 nautical miles, fleets of unmanned ships could also provide 24/7 protection for inlets, harbours and other sensitive maritime locations, and deliver missiles, torpedoes and other supplies to vessels at sea.

Rise of the robots: unmanned fleets of the future

In an interview with Reuters in 2016, former US Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work said he believed USVs in general, and Sea Hunter in particular, could revolutionise maritime operations.

“This is an inflection point,” he said. “This is the first time we’ve ever had a totally robotic, trans-oceanic-capable ship.”

“I would like to see unmanned flotillas operating in the western Pacific and the Persian Gulf within five years,” he added, going on to emphasise that such fleets would always be under human control. “There’s no reason to be afraid of a ship like this.”

The US Navy clearly believes that unmanned ships have the potential to effectively track and engage enemy submarines for extended periods; plans already in the pipeline include equipping drones with anti-submarine weapons and additional sensor suites to gather visual and electronic intelligence. In addition to flexible mission capabilities, multiple autonomous fleets can potentially be operated by a single land-based crew, a budget-conscious alternative to conventional, personnel-heavy fleets.

The fact that China, Russia and North Korea are looking to develop their submarine fleets is another point in Sea Hunter’s favour. A sister vessel, Sea Hunter II, has been ordered by the US Navy at an initial cost of $35.5m; operational testing of the original craft is a real possibility by the end of 2018.

The Drive reports that in February 2017, Captain Chris Sweeney, deputy director of Surface Warfare for Aegis and Ballistic Missile Defense, told USNI News that the service was considering forming an “experimental squadron” consisting of Sea Hunter, the first-in-class USS Zumwalt stealth destroyer, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, and a littoral combat ship for the purpose of field evaluation. Some analysts believe Sea Hunter may even participate in real-world missions this year, beckoning forth a new era of naval operations dominated by fleets of drones operated by land-based crews.

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Tx ship: a new concept in autonomous naval vessels.

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Thales and Steller Systems have launched a new concept in warship design at DSEI, offering an evolutionary link from manned warships, through lean-manning, to a fully autonomous platform.

The Transition Ship (TX Ship) concept was developed by Thales in partnership with Naval Architects Stellar Systems to deliver mass and lethality for naval forces at an affordable financial and manpower cost, while distancing sailors from dangerous, dirty or simply dull tasking.

“This is a thought leadership concept design for navies to talk about and understand,” said Matt Hunt, Mine Warfare Product Line Manager and lead for maritime autonomy for Thales in the UK.

There’s a requirement from countries for a Large Unmanned Surface Vessel to give navies both mass and lethality that larger, more expensive but isolated platforms can’t give you.

“However, it’s not just a pretty-looking boat; it’s got credible engineering and rigour behind it from our partners Stellar Systems who have a reputation as disruptive thought leaders.”

The 70m trimaran platform would have a range up to 6000 miles, heavy-lift flight deck and extensive payload mission bay. It could be lean manned, with a crew of 15, or operate in autonomous or remotely controlled modes.

Modularisation and a capacity for ISO containers, including self-contained crew accommodation, puts the emphasis on versatility. TX Ship’s trimaran hull gives it the stability to accept heavy lift helicopters, such as the Royal Navy’s Merlin, on its flight deck and a large mission bay as well as port and starboard launch and recovery systems under each wing.

The mission bay could accommodate specialist equipment for tasks including:

• Mine countermeasures operations
• ASW picket ship or unmanned decoy
• Role One casualty medical facility
• Covert forces insertion/extraction
• Emergency or transit Helicopter Landing Site
• Amphibious support/littoral strike using land weapon systems such as MLRS from its deck 

TX Ship’s versatility extends to its concept of operations, from close support to extended reach, operating independently or as part of a task group, its activity would be integrated through Thales’s M-Cube and MAPLE mission control systems. 

Payloads would also include unmanned vehicles so TX Ship could also act as a mothership in its own right, alongside manned ships in hybrid operations.

Autonomy brings engineering challenges. However, Thales is looking to collaborate with likeminded partners to provide solutions.

TX Ship’s digital launch is the start of a journey; Thales aspires to put a prototype on the water at the earliest opportunity, so that they, and potential customers, can begin to learn and understand the many levels of complexity surrounding a concept of operations for such a revolutionary ship.

Images courtesy of Steller Systems

Indonesian Navy welcomes new Trimaran FAC & Hospital ship

The indonesian navy (tni al) commissioned the trimaran-shaped klewang-class fast attack craft, kri golok (688), and the hospital ship, dr.wahidin sudirohusodo (991), on friday at madura koarmada pier ii in surabaya (14 january)..

Tayfun Ozberk 16 Jan 2022

Both ships were built at Indonesian shipyards by national means as part of the Indonesian defense industry’s indigenous production trend; KRI Golok-688 was built by PT Lundin Industry Invest, while KRI Dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo-991 was built by PT Indonesian PAL.

Admiral Yudo Morgono, Chief of the Indonesian Navy, was the event’s chief guest. Speaking at the event , Admiral Morgono expressed his excitement for the new fast-attack craft, KRI Golok, saying, “This type of ship is not only important to support naval operations as part of the task force and the Navy Fleet, but is a tangible manifestation of the Navy’s commitment to modernizing defense equipment in humanitarian operations.”

He also emphasized the significance of the new hospital ship by highlighting the region’s vulnerability to natural disasters as a result of geographical peculiarities:

“Indonesia’s position in the ring of fire makes Indonesia highly vulnerable to various types of natural disasters, while Indonesia’s geographical condition as an archipelagic country requires the ability to project health services, humanitarian assistance, and disaster management from one island to another across the waters.” Admiral Yudo Morgono, Chief of the Indonesian Navy

Kasal: TNI AL Komitmen Modernisasi Alutsista dan Optimalisasi Operasi Kemanusiaan https://t.co/1Ks88iZDH4 #jalesvevajayamahe #tnial #indonesiannavy #maritimjayaindonesiamaju pic.twitter.com/flrquV1WrZ — TNI Angkatan Laut (@_TNIAL_) January 14, 2022

About KRI Golok (688):

KRI Golok-688 is a Klewang-class fast attack vessel designed by PT Lundin Industry Invest. It is a stealthy, wave-piercing carbon trimaran vessel. The class’ lead ship, KRI Klewang, was destroyed in a deadly fire in 2012, leaving KRI Golok as the lone ship in the class.

PT Lundin launched KRI Golok-688 for the Indonesian Navy on 21 August 2021. She has a total length (Loa) of 62.53 meters, a width of 16 meters, a ship height of 18.7 meters, and a weight of 53.1 tons (ed. note: PT Lundin mentions a displacement of 245 tons). The maximum speed of 28 knots, cruising speed of 16 knots. The vessel is armed with a 30 mm cannon and 12.7 mm gun and is capable of carrying 25 crew members.

The Golok is a trimaran ship with a pointed forward shape, making it easy to execute hit-and-run tactics and maneuver in the littoral waters of the archipelago’s seas.

Because the hull is made of carbon fiber composite, the radar cross-section is reduced, making this ship harder to detect by enemy radar. In terms of strength and weight, this carbon fiber composite trumps steel. Additionally, this material can minimize bulk, be anti-rust and anti-dent, boost soundproofing, and reduce vibration or waves.

About KRI Dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo (991):

Launched by the Indonesian shipyard PT PAL on 07 January 2021 , KRI Dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo (991) is an Indonesian Navy hospital ship named after Indonesian national hero Wahidin Soedirohoesodo (1852-1917). He was a doctor and education reformer in the Dutch East Indies who co-founded the Javanese self-improvement society Budi Utomo.

The design of the ship is based on the existing Makassar-class of Landing Platform Dock (LPD).

She is 124 meters long, 21.8 meters wide with a displacement of 7,290 tons. It has a maximum speed of 18 knots, cruising speed of 14 knots, and economic speed of 12 knots. KRI Dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo has an endurance of up to 30 days at sea with a range of 10,000 nautical miles. With 120 crew and 66 medical personnel, this ship is capable of carrying out operational missions equivalent to a type C hospital.

This capability is supported by outpatient polyclinic facilities (general, eye, dental, etc.), emergency room, operating room, inpatient room, and radiology unit. Mobility for carrying out medical evacuation missions is also supported by the ability to transport medical helicopters, ambulance boats, and LCVPs.

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Times of San Diego

Local News and Opinion for San Diego

Navy Christens Future USS Pierre — Last Littoral Combat Ship Bound for San Diego

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The Navy and ship builder Austal USA christened on Saturday the future USS Pierre, the 19th — and last — littoral combat ship destined to be based in San Diego.

Ship sponsor Larissa Thune Hargens, daughter of South Dakota Sen. John Thune, broke a ceremonial bottle of sparkling wine over the bow of the aluminum trimaran before an audience of over four hundred guests at the shipyard in Mobile, AL.

It’s the second ship to be named in honor of the capital city of South Dakota, and the last of the fast, maneuverable Independence-variant warships to be built for the Navy.

“Austal USA has grown from a small commercial shipyard to a large, advanced defense ship manufacturer primarily thanks to the Indy-variant LCS program,” said Austal USA President Michelle Kruger.

“Christening this ship, the last Austal USA-built LCS, makes me a bit nostalgic but I know, for this company and the great team we’ve assembled, the future is bright and limitless,” she said.

The warship is 418 feet long and armed with a main gun, anti-aircraft missiles and machine guns, as well as two helicopters. It’s designed to operate in near-shore environments and can sprint at speeds over 50 mph.

“As we christen the USS Pierre, we also celebrate the extraordinary crews that will sail this ship, employing the capabilities and versatility of the littoral combat ship class, which will continue to play a pivotal role in safeguarding our nation’s interests now and for years to come,” said Rear Adm. Kevin Smith.

Following delivery, the future USS Pierre will join her sister ships homeported at Naval Base San Diego and deploying to Indo-Pacific region.

Chris Jennewein

Chris Jennewein is Editor & Publisher of Times of San Diego. More by Chris Jennewein

Navy Christens Future USS Pierre -- Last Littoral Combat Ship Bound for San Diego

T he Navy and ship builder Austal USA christened on Saturday the future USS Pierre, the 19th — and last — littoral combat ship destined to be based in San Diego.

Ship sponsor Larissa Thune Hargens, daughter of South Dakota Sen. John Thune, broke a ceremonial bottle of sparkling wine over the bow of the aluminum trimaran before an audience of over four hundred guests at the shipyard in Mobile, AL.

It’s the second ship to be named in honor of the capital city of South Dakota, and the last of the fast, maneuverable Independence-variant warships to be built for the Navy.

“Austal USA has grown from a small commercial shipyard to a large, advanced defense ship manufacturer primarily thanks to the Indy-variant LCS program,” said Austal USA President Michelle Kruger.

“Christening this ship, the last Austal USA-built LCS, makes me a bit nostalgic but I know, for this company and the great team we’ve assembled, the future is bright and limitless,” she said.

The warship is 418 feet long and armed with a main gun, anti-aircraft missiles and machine guns, as well as two helicopters. It’s designed to operate in near-shore environments and can sprint at speeds over 50 mph.

“As we christen the USS Pierre, we also celebrate the extraordinary crews that will sail this ship, employing the capabilities and versatility of the littoral combat ship class, which will continue to play a pivotal role in safeguarding our nation’s interests now and for years to come,” said Rear Adm. Kevin Smith.

Following delivery, the future USS Pierre will join her sister ships homeported at Naval Base San Diego and deploying to Indo-Pacific region.