First U.S. Littoral Combat Ship completes testing

The propulsion plant of the U.S. first Littoral Combat Ship, Freedom (LCS 1), has completed testing in preparation for dock trials. The ship is now ready to begin dock trials — the final stage of testing before underway trials. The agile 378-foot Freedom is powered by an innovative, combined diesel and gas turbine propulsion plant, with steerable water jet propulsion. This system will power the ship at cruise speeds out to ranges exceeding 3,500 nautical miles and will also allow the ship to sustain sprint speeds over 40 knots. Dock trials includes a series of demonstrations of propulsion, navigation, communication, and other systems conducted to ensure the ship is ready for sea trials. There has been rapid progress on Freedom since the beginning of the year. In February LCS 1’s four 750-kilowatt Fincantieri Isotta Fraschini diesel generators were lit off and its three-megawatt electrical power plant was successfully tested. In March and April, initial testing of the two Fairbanks Morse diesel engines occurred. The two Rolls-Royce MT30 gas turbine engines — the largest and most powerful ever installed on a Navy ship — were successfully lit off and tested in May, as were the steerable Rolls-Royce Kamewa water jets. Over the next few weeks, dockside testing of the ship’s engines and other systems will conclude at Marinette Marine in preparation for underway trials. Freedom will be delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2008 and will be home ported in San Diego.

The Lockheed Martin team’s design for LCS is a survivable, semi-planing steel monohull that provides outstanding maneuverability with proven sea-keeping characteristics to support launch and recovery operations, mission execution, and crew comfort. Team members also include naval architect Gibbs & Cox, ship builders Marinette Marine, a subsidiary of the Manitowoc Company, and Bollinger Shipyards, as well as best-of-industry domestic and international teammates to provide a flexible, low-risk war fighting solution.

LCS 1, “Light Off” With construction on Freedom essentially complete, the dock-side final tests of the ship’s systems continue. In February LCS 1’s four 750-kilowatt Fincantieri Isotta Fraschini diesel generators were “lit off” and its three-megawatt electrical power plant was successfully tested, loading each generator to its full-power capacity.

Freedom (LCS 1) Main Engine Testing Testing and outfitting of Freedom continues dockside at Marinette Marine, in Marinette, Wisconsin in preparation for sea trials. Freedom will be delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2008 and will be homeported in San Diego.

Littoral Combat Ship, Freedom (LCS 1) Initiated in February 2002, the LCS program represents a significant reduction in time to acquire, design and build ships in comparison to any previous ship class.

Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) LCS is part of the Surface Combatant “Family of Ships”: In addition to the U.S. Navy’s next-generation destroyer, DDG 1000, and cruiser, CG(X), the Surface Combatant Family of Ships concept calls for the introduction of a new Littoral Combat Ship (LCS).