US Navy receives final Independence-class Littoral Combat Ship
The delivery acceptance of the future USS Pierre marks the conclusion of the construction phase for the Independence-variant.
BAE Systems has awarded manufacturing equipment contracts to six more companies for Type 26 Global Combat Ship programme, bringing the total investment to date in the Type 26 supply chain to over £380 million, the company announced on 7 December.
The new contracts include equipment for the first three ships.
The contracts have been awarded to Rolls-Royce for steering gears and stabilisers; Johnsons Controls for chilled water plants; Marine Systems Technology for gastight, weathertight and watertight doors, hatches and scuttles and Hangar XY crane; and Salt Separation Services for reverse osmosis desalination plants. Detegasa has been contracted for membrane sewage treatment plants and oily water separators; and MEP–Pellegrini Marine Equipments for anchor handling and mooring equipment, boat davit, and radar cross section screen closures.
The combat systems team of BAE Systems is also now under contract to deliver the ships’ shared infrastructure and the electro-optical sensors control system, which detects and identifies potential threats in all weather conditions.
A total of 33 companies across the maritime supply chain are now working with BAE Systems to deliver the Type 26 ships.
The delivery acceptance of the future USS Pierre marks the conclusion of the construction phase for the Independence-variant.
The new Barracuda version has been engineered to perform enhanced subsea and seabed warfare missions.
The nearly $25 billion investment will cover USCG procurement of cutters, aircraft, helicopters, training simulators and Polar capabilities over the next four years.
After commissioning, FRC Frederick Mann will operate in Alaska and perform multiple missions.
The US Coast Guard (USCG) created new units, including five Programme Executive Offices (PEOs), to facilitate and speed up the procurement of new capabilities.
The US Navy does not have a precise date for the award of the procurement contract for the third Arleigh Burke-class destroyer despite having the funds to advance with the programme in FY2025.