U.S. Navy launches newest Littoral Combat Ship

The U.S. Navy has launched the future USS Cooperstown (LCS 23) during a ceremony at the Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM) shipyard in Marinette, Wisconsin.

The future USS Cooperstown launched Jan. 19, marking another important production milestone for the littoral combat ship (LCS) program. This is a new Freedom-variant ship that was designed to deliver speed to capability and to grow as the missions it serves evolve.

“Today the Lockheed Martin-led industry team launched LCS 23, the future USS Cooperstown, bringing the ship one step closer to joining the U.S. Navy”, said in the company.

LCS 23 is the first vessel named for Cooperstown. Her name honors the veterans who are members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame located in the namesake city.

The USS Cooperstown is a small, multipurpose warship, conceived by Lockheed Martin to operate close to shore.

The Freedom-variant team is led by Lockheed Martin (for the odd-numbered hulls, e.g. LCS 1). The Independence-variant team is led by Austal USA (for LCS 6 and follow-on even-numbered hulls) and was led by General Dynamics, Bath Iron Works for LCS 2 and LCS 4. Purchased under the innovative block-buy acquisition strategy, there are 12 ships currently under construction.

LCS is a modular, reconfigurable ship, with three types of mission packages including surface warfare, mine countermeasures, and anti-submarine warfare. The Program Executive Office Littoral Combat Ships (PEO LCS) is responsible for delivering and sustaining littoral mission capabilities to the fleet. Delivering high-quality warfighting assets while balancing affordability and capability is key to supporting the nation’s maritime strategy.