Navy Accepts Sixth LCS

The Navy has accepted its sixth Littoral Combat Ship during a ceremony at the Austal USA shipyard in Mobile, AL, the service announced today.

The Jackson (LCS-6) is the third Independence variant to be delivered to the Navy by the Austal-led team.

The ship will be commissioned this December in Gulfport, MS, according to an Aug. 11 Navy statement. Jackson will then conduct ship shock trials in Mayport, FL, before joining other LCSs in San Diego, CA, in late 2016, according to the press release.

"Today marks a significant milestone in the life of the future USS Jackson, an exceptional ship which will conduct anti-submarine, surface and mine countermeasure operations around the globe with ever-increasing mission package capability," LCS Program Manager Capt. Tom Anderson said in the statement. "It also marks a significant milestone for the LCS program, as the first of 20 LCS block buy ships [deliveries] to the Navy. It is exciting to see these capable, yet affordable, ships transitioning from serial production to serial delivery."

Jackson's sister ships are the Freedom (LCS-1), Independence (LCS-2), Fort Worth (LCS-3), and Coronado (LCS-4). The even-numbered Independence variants are built by an Austal-led team, while the odd-numbered Freedom ships are manufactured by a group led by Lockheed Martin.