The company building a fleet of combat ships for the U.S. military reports the future USS Cincinnati (LCS 20) has been delivered to the Navy.
This is the final step before the ship's commissioning set for Fall 2019 in Gulfport, Mississippi.
It is the 10th Independence-variant littoral combat ship (LCS) and will be the 18th LCS to enter the fleet, according to Austal USA, which has a more than $4.5 billion contract to provide 19 ships.
"I'm so proud of our incredible team here at Austal USA, our industry and Navy partners for achieving this major milestone for the future USS Cincinnati," says President Craig Perciavalle in a statement.
"This is a great day for the Navy and our country with the delivery of the future USS Cincinnati," adds Capt. Mike Taylor, LCS program manager. "I look forward to celebrating the commissioning of this great ship alongside the crew later this year. This ship will play an essential role in in carrying out our nation's maritime strategy."
The Navy will announce where the ship will be stationed after the commissioning. The first four ships, which are already commissioned, are ported in the Pacific.
The ship was christened in May 2018. Cincinnati council member and Navy veteran David Mann traveled to Alabama for the ceremony and presented several items from the city to be enshrined aboard the ship. A key to the city, a history of previous USS Cincinnati vessels, several medallions of sentimental value, and a letter from the mayor were added to a small aluminum box that was welded to the inside of the ship's mast like a time capsule during a "mast stepping" ceremony.
As WVXU previously reported, the ship includes two LM2500 marine gas turbine engines built at GE Aviation in Evendale. "Each LM2500 engine produces over 29,500 horsepower, propelling the ship to speeds in excess of 40 knots, or 46 miles per hour," GE says.
A littoral combat ship is a "high-speed, agile, shallow draft, focused-mission surface combatant designed to conduct surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and mine countermeasures missions in the littoral region," according to Austal.
This is the Navy's fifth vessel to carry the name "Cincinnati."
- USS Cincinnati (1861) was an ironclad river gunboat commissioned in 1862 that sunk twice in battle and raised each time. It was sold in 1866.
- USS Cincinnati (C-7) was a protected cruiser in service from 1894 to 1919.
- USS Cincinnati (CL-6) was a light cruiser commissioned in 1924, on patrols in the Atlantic Ocean during World War II, and scrapped in 1946.
- USS Cincinnati (SSN-693) was a Los Angeles-class nuclear attack submarine in service from 1978 to 1996.
- USS Queen City (Tinclad #26) commissioned in April 1863 and ultimately blown up and destroyed by Confederate forces.
(Information courtesy of the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County and the City of Cincinnati.)
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