SAN DIEGO — General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) announced today that it has been awarded a contract from Advanced Technology International (ATI) to develop and demonstrate a prototype Lithium-ion Fault Tolerant (LiFT) battery system for the U.S. Navy’s prototype “Snakehead” Large-Displacement Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (LDUUV), GA-EMS announced in a Feb. 4 release.

The LiFT battery system will power the LDUUV’s propulsion and support systems. The Snakehead LDUUV is intended to increase endurance, range, and payload hosting capabilities to support a variety of future mission and operations requirements.

“Our LiFT battery systems are designed to withstand the rugged marine environment and provide safe, reliable power that is critical to keeping propulsion and support systems operating throughout a mission cycle,” said Scott Forney, president of GA-EMS. “We look forward to expanding our efforts to develop and demonstrate prototype LiFT battery systems to support the LDUUV as we continue to provide LiFT systems for various other critical manned and unmanned underwater platforms used by the Department of Defense.”

“LiFT batteries are designed with passive safety features not found in other solutions,” stated Rolf Ziesing, vice president of programs at GA-EMS. “Some lithium-ion battery systems rely on an active forced water cooling system to cool batteries and mitigate thermal events. Active systems add more equipment, weight and certification requirements to qualify a platform for use in a maritime environment. LiFT battery systems eliminate those complexities, simplifying installation, operation, and maintenance without compromising safety and reliability.”

The LiFT battery system’s modular design and single cell fault tolerance is designed to prevent uncontrolled and catastrophic cascading lithium-ion cell failure, improving the safety of personnel and platforms while keeping power available for high mission assurance. The flexible architecture of the high-energy-density LiFT battery system can be configured to meet the most demanding needs of manned and unmanned underwater vehicles. LiFT battery systems have undergone at-sea testing, including use in other undersea vehicles that have been classified by Det Norske Veritas Germanischer Lloyd, an international accredited registrar and classification society for the maritime industry.

WASHINGTON — Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer announced that the next Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship will be named USS Kingsville (LCS 36), the secretary’s public affairs officer said in a Feb. 4 release.

The future USS Kingsville (LCS 36) is named in honor of the city of Kingsville, Texas, and is the first ship to bear the name.

“I am pleased to name a future Independence-variant LCS USS Kingsville,” said Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer. “The citizens of Kingsville have been steadfast partners to the Navy and Marine Corps team, and their enduring support of our future strike fighter pilots have helped make the city of Kingsville the gateway for naval aviators. I am confident this ship will continue that legacy of service for decades to come.”

The future USS Kingsville will be built by Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama. This ship will be 419 feet long with a beam length of 104 feet and be capable of operating at speeds in excess of 40 knots.

The Navy has accepted delivery of 17 littoral combat ships (LCS). Including the recent contract modifications, a total of 35 LCSs have been procured with 11 ships under construction (LCS 17, 19-26) and seven more ships in preconstruction (LCS 29 – 32, 34, 36, 38).

ASTORIA, Ore. — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Alert returned home Feb. 1 following a 60-day counter-drug patrol in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, seizing more than $83 million worth of cocaine during the deployment, the Coast Guard Pacific area said in a Feb. 4 release.

The crew interdicted two suspected drug smuggling vessels, yielding more than 5,700 pounds of seized cocaine while patrolling international waters in support of Joint Interagency Task Force-South. Seven suspected drug traffickers were apprehended during the two interdictions.

The Alert crew received support from the U.S. Navy, Customs and Border Protection and Coast Guard maritime patrol aircrews, who provided the cutter with reconnaissance and over watch leading up to and during the interdictions.

“Coast Guard men and women operating under Joint Interagency Task Force-South, a U.S. Southern Command component, use military hardware and law enforcement authority to interdict smuggling vessels and bring the suspects to justice,” said Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Karl Schultz. “This disrupts key funding sources for these dangerous criminal networks and diminishes their influence in the Western Hemisphere. Aviation forces from the U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and others all support this crucial effort.”

A Coast Guard Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron (HITRON) aircrew and an MH-65 dolphin helicopter from Jacksonville, Florida, deployed aboard Alert throughout the patrol to assist the cutter’s boarding teams during the interdictions. When not in pursuit of suspect vessels, the HITRON team helped qualify multiple Alert crewmembers during training evolutions launching and landing helicopters from the cutter’s flight deck while underway.

Deployed since early December, Alert’s crew spent the holidays at sea. Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Jason M. Vanderhaden called the cutter to speak with crew members.

“We are fortunate to have such a high-spirited crew, happily celebrating Christmas and New Year’s Eve together, at sea for 32 days between liberty stops,” said Cmdr. Tobias Reid, Alert’s commanding officer. “Between the holidays, two very interesting smuggling cases and our equator crossing ceremony, we had a very full and satisfying patrol. But, above all, we are thankful for the incredible generosity from the Astoria, Warrenton/Hammond and Seaside communities, who provide such tremendous support to our families while we were on patrol.”

Commissioned in 1969, Alert is one of 14 remaining 210-foot reliance-class medium-endurance cutters built for the Coast Guard and one of three reliance-class cutters stationed on the West Coast. The cutter and crew perform search and rescue, living marine resource and environmental protection, and counter-drug missions throughout the Pacific Ocean from the U.S.-Canadian border to south of the Galapagos Islands. The fleet of aging medium-endurance cutters are operating beyond the original service lifespan and are becoming increasingly more expensive to maintain and operate.

The Coast Guard will be phasing out medium-endurance cutters with the addition of the 360-foot offshore patrol cutter (OPC). Acquisition of OPCs is one of the Coast Guard’s highest investment priorities. The OPC will provide a capability bridge between the 418-foot national security cutter, which patrols the open ocean, and the 154-foot fast response cutter, which serves closer to shore. The OPCs will feature state-of-the-art technology to meet the service’s long-term need for cutters capable of deploying independently or as part of task groups to conduct law enforcement, search and rescue, homeland security, and defense missions. The first OPC is scheduled for delivery in 2021.

The OPC will provide the tools to effectively enforce federal laws, secure our maritime borders, disrupt transnational criminal organizations and respond to 21st century threats,” said Schultz. “OPCs will be the backbone of the Coast Guard’s strategy to project and maintain an offshore presence.”

MARINETTE, Wis. — The Navy accepted delivery of the future littoral combat ship USS Billings (LCS 15) during a ceremony at the Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM), shipyard, Marinette, Wisconsin, Feb. 1, the Naval Sea Systems Command said in a Feb. 4 release.

The future USS Billings is the 17th littoral combat ship (LCS) to be delivered to the Navy and the eighth of the Freedom variant to join the fleet. Delivery marks the official transfer of the ship from the shipbuilder, part of a Lockheed Martin-led team, to the Navy. It is the final milestone prior to commissioning, which is planned for later this year.

“Today marks a significant milestone in the life of the future USS Billings,” said Capt. Mike Taylor, LCS program manager. “I look forward to celebrating the commissioning of this fine ship alongside the crew later this year, where she will play an essential role in the new fleet of warships that will carry out our nation’s future maritime strategy.”

Several additional Freedom-variant ships are under construction at FMM. The future USS Indianapolis (LCS 17) is preparing for trials this summer. The future USS St. Louis (LCS 19) was christened and launched in December. The future ships Minneapolis-Saint Paul (LCS 21), Cooperstown (LCS 23), Marinette (LCS 25), Nantucket (LCS 27) and Beloit (LCS 29) are also in various stages of production, with yet-to-be-named LCS 31 awarded last month.

LCS is a highly maneuverable, lethal and adaptable ship designed to support focused mine countermeasures, antisubmarine warfare and surface warfare missions.

The LCS class consists of two variants, the Freedom variant and the Independence variant, designed and built by two industry teams. The Lockheed Martin-led team builds the odd-numbered hulls. The Independence variant team is led by Austal USA, Mobile, Alabama, (for LCS 6 and the subsequent even-numbered hulls).

LCS is now the second-largest surface ship class in the U.S. Navy. In 2018, five LCSs were delivered to the fleet, and three are scheduled for delivery in 2019.

MIAMI — The Coast Guard interdicted two suspected smugglers and approximately 132 pounds of cocaine Thursday 5 miles east of Haulover Inlet, Florida, the Coast Guard 7th District said in a Feb. 1 release.

The Coast Guard Cutter Paul Clark (WPC 1106) crew initially detected a westbound 35-foot pleasure craft approximately 30 miles east of Haulover Inlet.

The Paul Clark boarding team discovered a Bahamian national, hidden under a blanket, along with approximately 132 pounds of cocaine in the vessel’s engine room. Initial background checks identified that the Bahamian individual has multiple previous narcotics smuggling convictions and an active United States arrest warrant.

“This successful interdiction is the result of a diligent boarding team who safely stopped two criminals seeking to bring contraband to the streets of South Florida,” said Capt. Megan Dean, commander of Coast Guard Sector Miami. “Our crews continue to maintain a constant presence and work daily with our DHS partner agencies to stop and stem this flow of illicit drugs and human smuggling that threaten our national security.”

The case was turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). HSI is the principle investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats. HSI special agents investigate, disrupt and dismantle terrorist, transnational and other criminal organizations that threaten or seek to exploit the customs and immigration laws of the United States.

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — For the first time in more than three decades, Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII’s) Newport News Shipbuilding division was awarded a multi-ship contract from the U.S. Navy to build two aircraft carriers. The company announced on Jan. 31 that it received a contract modification valued at $15.2 billion for the detail design and construction of the Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers Enterprise (CVN 80) and CVN 81, which has not yet been named.

The Navy’s decision to partner with HII to create the best acquisition approach will save more than $4 billion across the program.

“Today’s announcement is a triumphant step toward returning to a 12-ship aircraft carrier fleet and building the 355-ship Navy our nation needs,” said Jennifer Boykin, president of Newport Shipbuilding. “Most importantly for us, it provides stability into the year 2032 for our workforce and for our supplier businesses across the United States.”

The construction of Enterprise, which began in 2017, and CVN 81 will be completed at the company’s Newport News Shipbuilding division. The ships are scheduled to be delivered in 2028 and 2032, respectively.

Buying two aircraft carriers will stimulate Newport News’ aircraft carrier supplier base of more than 2,000 suppliers in 46 states, allowing businesses to phase in work more efficiently. These benefits will help accelerate production, enabling the company to build aircraft carriers every three to four years.

To support the contract, the company is making investment in facilities and will continue its digital transformation efforts.

“This contract award is something we should celebrate, and it is also something we should never take for granted,” Boykin said. “We have the responsibility to leverage the investments we are making in our workforce, the facility and in digital shipbuilding to become smarter, better, stronger. It is more important than ever that we execute efficiently and transform our business operations so that we leave a lasting legacy of our own.”

The strategy comes as a result of extensive collaboration with the Navy to reduce cost and drive efficiencies. The approach is not new, however. The Navy achieved substantial cost savings in 1980s when it used the procurement strategy to purchase the Nimitz-class aircraft carriers USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74), USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75), USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) and USS George Washington (CVN 73). The four ships were built by Newport News.

This contract modification comes after previous contract awards for the advance procurement and advance fabrication of Enterprise, starting in May 2016.

“History has its eyes on Newport News Shipbuilding, and today is a great reminder that we are all part of something much greater than ourselves,” Boykin said. “I could not be more proud of our shipbuilders and excited for our future.”

PORTLAND, Ore. — Vigor has entered an agreement to take over the former home of Christensen Yachts in Vancouver, Washington, following a search for the best location to build the U.S. Army’s new landing craft, Maneuver Support Vessel (Light) or MSV(L), the company announced in a Feb. 1 release. The MSV(L) contract represents the largest award in Vigor’s history, with a total value of nearly $1 billion over 10 years and hundreds of family-wage jobs.

Vigor expects to eventually employ approximately 400 workers at the site and will be investing millions in capital upgrades and equipment.

In addition to the Army landing craft production, other programs to be constructed at the site will include ongoing production of the Combatant Craft Medium (CCM) for the U.S. Navy as well as for U.S. allies, the Response Boat-Medium (RB-M) for the U.S. Coast Guard and export market, Vigor’ Fast Interceptor, aluminum fast ferries and commercial workboats. Vigor’s aluminum marine work is currently performed primarily in Seattle (Ballard), Washington, and Clackamas, Oregon. Aluminum marine work in these locations will phase out as work is moved to the Vancouver site over the coming year.

Vigor looked in both Oregon and Washington state at building and buying options for this facility. Local, state and federal leaders in both states showed support throughout the process, demonstrating their commitment to the economic benefits and jobs created by strong manufacturing and maritime sectors in the Pacific Northwest.

“Vigor’s decision to keep and grow jobs in Washington state is a testament to the great quality of life and workforce we have available here,” said Gov. Jay Inslee. “Our team worked intently with Vigor to find a competitive solution to keep these jobs in Washington, and I’m glad to see the continued success of one of our great corporate citizens contributing to our economy by creating living wage jobs in Vancouver.”

The Vancouver site was selected for a number of factors. The opportunity to bring its entire aluminum fabrication team together in one location was a primary driver, coupled with the livability of the community, its proximity to existing Vigor facilities and the suitability of the Christensen facility for Vigor’s production needs.

“The synergies we will achieve by bringing these amazing builders together in one location strengthens our competitive advantage and builds upon our long-term goals as an outstanding industrial company,” said Frank Foti, Vigor president and CEO. “While we’ve had operations in Vancouver since 1980, this move represents a substantial increase in the number of Vigor employees who will be living and working here. Our Vigor team looks forward to getting to know the Vancouver community better and being a force for good through our remarkable people and the economic activity associated with our work.”

The approximate timeline is to begin production at the facility in May with existing work followed by the beginning of construction of the MSV(L) prototype in the summer. Once the MSV(L) prototype is completed and testing and refinements have occurred, the schedule calls for four vessels in the Low-Rate Production phase, followed by 32 vessels once Full Rate Production is underway.

BATH, Maine — The keel of the future USS Carl M. Levin (DDG 120) was ceremoniously laid at General Dynamics Bath Iron Works (BIW) shipyard, Feb.1, the company said in a release of the same date.

Speakers at the ceremony included Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King; Navy Secretary Richard Spencer; the ship’s namesake, former Sen. Carl Levin; and Reps. Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden.

Sen. Levin and the ship’s sponsors, his three daughters, Kate Levin Markel, Erica Levin and Laura Levin, authenticated the keel by etching their initials into the keel plate to symbolically recognize the joining of modular components and the ceremonial beginning of the ship.

“We are honored to be celebrating this milestone with Sen. Levin, Mrs. Levin, their daughters and so many distinguished guests,” said Capt. Casey Moton, DDG 51 class program manager, Program Executive Office (PEO) Ships. “This has been a special occasion to lay the keel for our Nation’s 70th Arleigh Burke destroyer, and to do so with a namesake that shares the same sense of purpose and commitment to service as our Sailors.”

The ship’s namesake served in the U.S. Senate for 36 years from 1979-2015. As the longest serving senator in Michigan state history, Levin became a staunch supporter of the armed services through his work and leadership as chairman and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Armed Services.

DDG 120 will be built in the Flight IIA configuration with the Aegis Baseline 9 Combat System, which includes Integrated Air and Missile Defense capability. This system delivers quick reaction time, high firepower and increased electronic countermeasures capability for anti-air warfare. Delivery to the fleet is planned for fiscal 2021.

These multimission surface combatants serve as integral assets in global maritime security, engaging in air, undersea, surface, strike and ballistic missile defense, as well as providing increased capabilities in antisubmarine warfare, command and control, and antisurface warfare.

In addition to Carl M. Levin (DDG 120), BIW has four additional Arleigh Burke class destroyers under construction — Daniel Inouye (DDG 118), John Basilone (DDG 122), Harvey C. Barnum Jr. (DDG 124) and Patrick Gallagher (DDG 127), as well as the Zumwalt class destroyer Lyndon B. Johnson (DDG 1002). BIW is under contract for an additional six Arleigh Burke class destroyers that will all be constructed in the Flight III configuration with enhanced air and missile defense capabilities.

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy’s top officer said that a forthcoming force structure assessment will reflect the guidance of the National Defense Strategy, the changing security environment and emerging technology.

“The security environment has only gotten more sporty, so we’ll take that into account,” said Adm. John M. Richardson, chief of naval operations, speaking Feb. 1 to reporters in the Pentagon, referring to the emergence of increased and sometimes aggressive naval activity in recent years by the Russian and Chinese naval and air forces.

Richardson also said that “technology is starting to come into play, so what counts as a naval platform is going to be an interesting discussion in this new force structure assessment. We want to make sure we are moving forward in a very evidence-based way, so that we’re not counting on something that hasn’t been relatively proven when it comes to the security of the nation, but we also want to make sure we’re moving fast.”

Increased agility in operations and more rapid development of technology are themes that Richardson has emphasized in recent public addresses.

Although the CNO did not discuss further what counts as a naval platform, the issue is likely to come forth as the Navy develops large and medium unmanned surface vessels as part of its Future Surface Combatant fleet. Unmanned underwater vehicles such as the Orca and Snakehead may also blur the definition of a platform and hence what counts as a ship to be counted in the fleet.

“We’re on a path to grow the Navy,” he said. “The last force structure assessment was done about 18 months ago, put out this 355-ship number. There is structure within that 355, so sometimes people don’t recognize that. … That 355 number really came about by a number of studies that were conducted inside the Department [of the Navy] and outside the department. They consistently advocated for a stronger naval force, more naval power. The all converged into something in the mid-to-upper 300s in terms of numbers of platforms.”

The 355-ship Navy was codified by the Congress in the fiscal 2018 National Defense Authorization Act. The Navy determined its goal of 355 ships in a force structure assessment released in December 2016.

Richardson said the new force structure assessment report is due later this year.

“We’ll see where that goes,” he said. “We’ll get a new number. We may hold to it, we may not. The analysis is in process.”

SEATTLE, Wash. — Vigor, the builder of the US Navy’s Combatant Craft Medium and Combatant Craft Heavy as well as the U.S. Coast Guard Response Boat – Medium (RB-M) will feature its new 21-meter patrol boat, the Vigor Fast Inceptor (VFI) at NAVDEX 2019, the company said in a Jan. 30 release. VFI is the next evolution of a proven hull form based on thousands of hours of successful operation. Engineered for superior seakeeping in challenging environments, high-speed interdiction, addressing swarm threats, UAV launch and retrievals, the craft delivers powerful multimission capabilities with sprint speed of 70 knots.

“The design of VFI is a response to the needs of governmental agencies around the world to achieve the critical missions facing today’s maritime security agencies,” said Bill Blount, Vigor International business development manager. “Our teams have been perfecting performance for the applications and we’re excited to share the result at NAVDEX.” Vigor partnered with Michael Peters Yacht Design (MPYD), known for its pioneering work in high-speed hull forms including offshore racing and patrol craft to deliver a high-performance patrol boat with unequaled control and maneuverability and specifically tailored to the unique environment of the Middle East. The company is already in discussion with multiple government organizations for orders of the VFI and will display a model of the vessel at NAVDEX.

The craft features a hybrid aluminum/composite design, multiple options for remote controlled weapons systems, crewed served weapons mounts and a FLIR night vision system. Suspension seats keep crew and passenger’s mission-ready, and drive-by-wire propulsion and steering controls deliver unequaled control and maneuverability.