The US Navy has taken delivery of littoral combat ship (LCS) 22 at a ceremony at Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama.
The future USS Kansas City is the 11th the Independence class LCS to join the fleet, and the 21st overall.
The vessel is set to be commissioned into navy service later in 2020.
Kansas City is the second LCS delivered to the navy so far this year, following the future USS St Louis (LCS 19), which was delivered on 6 February. Three more—Minneapolis-St Paul (LCS 21), Oakland (LCS 24) and Mobile (LCS 26) — are planned for delivery later this year.
Forming part of the Reconciliation Bill, the funding will support multiple efforts involving autonomous capabilities, interceptors, missiles, rockets and torpedoes.
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.
Connect with us on socials
