Keel Laying for Trimaran LCS2

Released on Thursday, January 19, 2006

Signifying the transition from concept to reality, General Dynamics and the US Navy today participated in a keel laying ceremony for Littoral Combat Ship 2 (LCS 2), a revolutionary trimaran warship that is part of a family of new US Navy surface ships. Representatives of the Alabama congressional delegation also attended the ceremony, which was conducted at Austal USA shipyards in Mobile, where the warship will be built. Delivery of LCS 2 will occur in late 2007. Bath Iron Works (Bath, Maine), a subsidiary of General Dynamics, is leading the General Dynamics Littoral Combat Ship Team.

The LCS is the Navy's newest surface combatant and is a key element in the Navy's surface combatant force transformation strategy. Designed to accommodate focused missions modules for mine warfare, antisubmarine warfare and antisurface warfare, among others, LCS will ensure and enhance friendly force access to littoral areas.

The General Dynamics Littoral Combat Ship's innovative trimaran hull form will give the Navy a ship that can reach open ocean speeds nearing 50 knots and possesses outstanding seakeeping capabilities. LCS 2, has a flight deck larger than any other surface combatant that will support near-simultaneous operation of two MH-60R/S helicopters or multiple unmanned vehicles. LCS 2 will also provide one of the largest useable payload volumes of any U.S. Navy surface combatant and deliver greater payload per displacement ton than any ship of comparable displacement.

The General Dynamics Team has designed a technical infrastructure that is not bound by proprietary systems. The result is a flexible information technology backbone that uses strict industry standards, commercially available products and published interfaces to ensure the Navy will not be locked into a proprietary system that will limit access to alternatives. The open architecture design eliminates dependencies on any specific hardware and software products thereby making it possible for the Navy to take advantage of rapidly changing advancements in the market place.