Littoral Combat Ship Charleston (LCS 18) Completes Acceptance Trials
MOBILE, Ala. – Charleston (LCS 18), the ninth Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) built by Austal, successfully completed acceptance trials in mid-July in the Gulf of Mexico.
This milestone achievement involved the execution of intense comprehensive tests by the Austal-led industry team while underway, which demonstrated to the Navy the successful operation of the ship’s major systems and equipment. Acceptance trials are the last significant milestone before delivery of the ship. LCS 18 will be the third Independence-variant LCS Austal delivers to the Navy in 2018.
“I am so proud to be a part of this talented team of men and women who achieved another major LCS milestone,” commented Austal USA President Craig Perciavalle. “By the end of the year, we will have delivered three LCS to the Navy, including LCS 18 – no small accomplishment and a direct result of the hard work and dedication of Austal’s incredible shipbuilding team, the exceptional teamwork with all of our suppliers, and the support of our local, state, and federal legislators.”
Seven Austal-built Independence-variant LCS are homeported at the San Diego Navy Base. “I was very excited to hear about the great things our ships are doing for the fleet during my recent trip to San Diego, and was even more excited to hear about the Navy’s future plans” Perciavalle said. “As we continue to grow to a 355 ship Navy, I am confident these small surface combatants will continue to contribute to the distributed lethality of our nation’s global force structure.”
The LCS program is at full rate production and is continuing its momentum at Austal USA with several ships currently under construction including Charleston. Cincinnati (LCS 20) has launched and is preparing for trials. Final assembly is well underway on Kansas City (LCS 22) and Oakland (LCS 24). Modules for the future USS Mobile (LCS 26) are under construction in the module manufacturing facility and construction on Savannah (LCS 28) commenced mid-July.
