Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus will announce the naming of the next Independence variant littoral combat ship (LCS) at 2 p.m. EST on Friday, Feb. 10 at the Pentagon Center Courtyard.

The ship will be the 10th ship in the LCS series and the fifth of the Independence variant. The ship is part of a dual block buy of LCS class ships announced by Mabus in December 2010. The LCS 10 will be 419 feet in length, have a waterline beam of 103 feet, displace approximately 3,000 tons, and will make speed in excess of 40 knots. Construction of LCS 10 will be by Austal Shipbuilding in Mobile, Ala.

The LCS performs a vital role in the Navy's ability to execute DoD's defense strategy. The LCS 10 will be designed to defeat growing littoral threats and provide access and dominance in the coastal waters. A fast, agile surface combatant, the LCS provides the required warfighting capabilities and operational flexibility to execute focused missions close to the shore such as mine warfare, anti-submarine warfare and surface warfare.

Former Rep. Ike Skelton, former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, and Roxanna Green will be attending the event. Green is the mother of Christina-Taylor Green, the nine-year-old girl who was killed while attending the meeting of constituents where Giffords was shot during an assassination attempt in January 2011.

Interested media may contact the secretary of the Navy Public Affairs, 703-697-7491. Information on LCS is available online at http://www.navy.mil/navydata/fact_print.asp?cid=4200&tid=1650&ct=4&page=1 .


Source:
U.S. Department of Defense
Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs)