US Navy Orders Second Austal Littoral Combat Ship

The US Navy has announced a fixed price incentive contract for the construction of a second Austal-designed and built Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). Awarded to Prime contractor Bath Iron Works, a General Dynamics company, the second Austal-built LCS will be similar to the 127 metre “Independence” (LCS 2), which is currently at an advanced stage of construction at Austal’s US shipyard in Mobile, Alabama. The award represents the second half of the two-vessel US$1.02 billion budget appropriation for the LCS program for US Fiscal Year 2009, ending September 2009. Approximately 50 per cent of the total award amount is for work to be performed at Austal USA.