Austal USA delivered the future USS Augusta (LCS-34) Independence
-variant Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) to the Navy on May 12 at the company’s shipyard in Mobile, Ala.
The delivery occurred after the ship successfully completed acceptance trials in March that tested the ship’s major systems and equipment.
The Augusta is the 17th Independence-variant LCS and is named in honor of Maine’s state capital.
Pre-commissioning unit LCS-34 is now preparing the ship for fleet introduction, with its commissioning scheduled for fall 2023. After the ship is commissioned it will be homeported in San Diego, with the other Independence-variant LCSs.
“The delivery of the future USS Augusta is the result of a successful joint effort between Austal USA shipbuilders, our Navy teammates and suppliers from across the nation to produce a warship that will serve our country for years to come,” Rusty Murdaugh, president of Austal USA, said in a statement.
“The delivery of the future USS Augusta marks a noteworthy milestone in the life of this ship and forges a great connection to the citizens of Maine, a state with a long history of shipbuilding,” LCS Program Manager Capt. Andy Gold said separately.
LCS-34 is the second LCS delivered this fiscal year, after the Freedom-variant USS Marinette (LCS-25) was delivered in February.
Austal USA is still building the last two Independence-variant LCSs: the recently christened future USS Kingsville (LCS-36) and the future USS Pierre (LCS-38).
These San Diego-based LCSs are set to field the Mine Countermeasures Mission Package (MCM MP), consisting of unmanned systems and sensors based on an unmanned vessel and a helicopter. That mission package achieved initial operational capability earlier in May (Defense Daily, May 2).