The Navy announced Wednesday that the broken-down littoral combat ship USS Fort Worth will sail to San Diego under its own power for repairs this summer.
The Fort Worth’s propulsion system was damaged Jan. 12, forcing the San Diego-based vessel to remain in port in Singapore.
According to the Navy, the crew failed provide adequate lubricant to the ship’s combining gears — complex machinery that links the output of gas turbine and diesel engines, and directs the result to shafts that drive water jets.
Last month, the Navy relieved Cmdr. Michael Atwell of his position as head of LCS Crew 101.
The ship will use its gas turbine engines on a six-week voyage to San Diego that will require several fueling stops along the way, the Navy reported.
The vessel was scheduled for major maintenance once it got back to San Diego anyway, but it hasn’t been determined whether that period will have to be extended because of the combining gear work.
The Fort Worth has been deployed to Southeast Asia since December 2014. It has two San Diego-based crews that rotate aboard ship every four months.
— City News Service
