The chief of naval operations praised the versatility of the San Diego-based USS Independence and other futuristic littoral combat ships of its type.
Adm. Jonathan Greenert spoke last week in Pensacola, FL, where the Independence is testing new anti-mine warfare technology in the Gulf of Mexico. The trimaran-hull craft is the first of its type.
“The thing that is of value about the LCS is that she has great volume, high speed, and is modular,” said Greenert. “What that means is you can change out packages to perform different missions.
“Currently the Independence is configured for mine countermeasures operations, but she can be reconfigured for other missions including maritime security or anti-submarine warfare. These packages could be forward deployed around the world in hot spots, where in a matter of a few days, the ship could be changed as necessary to meet the demand.”
The Navy is building 52 of the ships in two variants, the Independence type and the single-hull Freedom type. The first ship of each type is based in San Diego.
