Article Posted on : - Jan 12, 2012

An Austal photo.

MOBILE, USA (BNS): Austal USA has launched the second Independence-class Littoral Combat Ship, Coronado, for the US Navy.

The 127-metre high-speed trimaran combatant ship rolled out from the shipbuilder's Mobile facility in Alabama on January 10.

A contract was awarded to General Dynamics-led team in May 2009 for the construction of LCS-4. Construction of the vessel began at Austal's Mobile facility in December 2009.

The vessel will join the US Navy as the fourth Littoral Combat Ship (LCS 4). It will operate to defeat littoral threats and provide access and dominance in coastal waters for missions such as mine warfare, anti-submarine warfare and surface warfare.

Delivery of the vessel is scheduled for June 2012.

The LCS, being developed in two variants, is envisioned by the US Navy as a versatile, networked, agile, surface combatant capable of defeating anti-access and asymmetric threats in the littorals.

While Austal is building the Independence-class aluminum trimaran LCSs, Lockheed Martin is developing the Freedom-class semiplaning monohull ships.

The US Navy intends to procure a total of 55 Littoral Combat Ships for multi-mission support.