LCS Christening

The Navy will christen its newest Littoral Combat Ship, the Milwaukee (LCS-5), in a ceremony today at the Marinette Marine Corp. shipyard in Marinette, WI.

Sylvia Panetta, wife of former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, will serve as the Milwaukee's sponsor and will officially christen the ship.

"Milwaukee's christening serves as a tribute to this great American city, but also to the hardworking people of Wisconsin and our nation's entire industrial base," Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said in a statement issued by the service. "LCS is one of our most important platforms and represents the future of the Navy. Our commitment to this program remains as steadfast as that of those who helped build this great ship."

The fiscal year 2014 House and Senate agreement on defense policy would limit the availability of funds for the LCS program that include construction or advanced procurement for LCS-25 or LCS-26.

In order for the service to receive FY-14 funding, Mabus must issue a report coordinated with the operational test and evaluation director and the under secretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics. That report must include a test and evaluation master plan for both sea frames and each mission module to demonstrate operational effectiveness and suitability.

Further, the Joint Requirements Oversight Council must review the capabilities and legacy systems the LCS is planned to replace and make sure the ship can meet the requirements of the combatant commands and future threats.