Austal celebrated the christening of Expeditionary Fast Transport USNS Carson City (EPF-7) with a ceremony on January 15 at its state-of-the-art shipyard, Mobile, Alabama. USNS Carson City is the seventh of 10 Expeditionary Fast Transport vessels (EPF), formerly Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV), that Austal has under contract with the U.S. Navy as part of a $1.6 billion 10-ship block-buy contract.
EPF-7, a 338-foot/103-meter shallow draft aluminum catamaran, is a multi-mission, non-combatant transport vessel characterized by its high volume, high speed, and flexibility. It is the second U.S. Navy ship to be named Carson City after the capital city of Nevada.
When Secretary of the U.S. Navy Ray Mabus officially named EPF-7 «USNS Carson City» in April 2013 he proclaimed, «Carson City displays American values of community, ingenuity and perseverance at their best». He said he chose to name the ship after Carson City to honor those values and the men and women of the community as well as the state of Nevada.
Carson City will soon join her sister EPF’s that have been delivered over the last three years including USNS Spearhead (T-EPF-1) which has over 100,000 nautical miles/115,078 miles/185,200 km at sea and is currently on her fifth deployment since she was delivered in 2012.
«We’re very excited to christened Carson City, and at how well this ship is coming together». Austal USA president Craig Perciavalle said. «The EPF program has really matured very well thanks to the incredible shipbuilding team we have here at Austal, including our U.S. Navy teammates».
The ship’s sponsor, Susan Asbury Crowell is the daughter of U.S. Air Force Colonel Robert Asbury and wife of Captain Robert Crowell, USN (Retired). Susan and her husband have called Carson City home since the early 1970s. Active in her community, Susan has been a long-standing member of the Nevada Opera Association as well as president of the Brewery Arts Board of Directors and a member of the Mile High Jazz Band board, two of the premier organizations promoting all art forms in Nevada’s capital city. She has also served on the Carson Tahoe Hospital Foundation board of directors and is currently a member of the Carson Tahoe Hospital advisory board.
More than 300 naval guests, civic leaders, community members and Austal employees attended the ceremony held beneath the hull of the ship in Austal’s final assembly bay.
Three EPFs and six Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) are currently under construction in Austal’s Mobile, Alabama shipyard. The company is scheduled to launch EPF-7 before the end of the month, while the future USS Montgomery (LCS-8) prepares for its acceptance sea trials later this spring.
Austal USA operates a full-service shipyard offering design, construction and high-speed vessel service and repair. As Austal continues to expand its service and repair capabilities, the company is well-positioned for new business with advanced engineering, test and trials capabilities, a west coast operations office in San Diego and a state-of-the-art waterfront facility located in the Port of Mobile on Mobile Bay.
SPECIFICATIONS
| PRINCIPAL DIMENSIONS | |
| Material | Hull and superstructure – aluminium alloy |
| Length overall | 103 m/337.9 feet |
| Beam overall | 28.5 m/93.5 feet |
| Hull draft (maximum) | 3.83 m/12.57 feet |
| MISSION BAY | |
| Area (with tie-downs) | 1,863 m2/20,053 feet2 |
| Clear Height | 4.75 m/15.6 feet |
| Turning diameter | 26.2 m/86.0 feet |
| ISO TEU (Twenty Equivalent Units) Stations | 6 Interface Panels |
| ACCOMMODATIONS | |
| Crew | 41 |
| Single SR | 2 |
| Double SR | 6 |
| Quad SR | 7 |
| Troop Seats | 312 |
| Troop Berths | Permanent: 104 |
| Temporary: 46 | |
| Galley and Messing | 48 |
| PROPULSION | |
| Main Engines | 4 × MTU 20V8000 M71L Diesel Engines 4 × 9.1 MW |
| Gear boxes | 4 × ZF 60000NR2H Reduction Gears |
| Waterjets | 4 × Wartsila WLD 1400 SR |
| PERFORMANCE | |
| Average Speed | 35 knots/40 mph/65 km/h @ 90% MCR with 635 mt (700 st) payload |
| Maximum Speed | 43 knots/50 mph/80 km/h without payload |
| Maximum Transit Range | 1,200 NM/1,381 miles/2,222 km |
| Self-Deployment Range | 5,600 NM/6,444 miles/10,371 km |
| Survival Through | SS-7 |
| AVIATION FACILITIES | |
| NAVAIR Level 1 Class 2 Certified Flight Deck for one helicopter | |
| Centreline parking area for one helicopter | |
| NAVAIR Level 1 class 4 Type 2 Certified VERTREP (Vertical Replenishment) | |
| Helicopter Control Station | |
| AUXILIARY SYSTEMS | |
| Active Ride Control | Transcom Interceptors |
| Foils: 3.24 m2/34.9 feet2 each, forward on inboard sides of demi-hulls | |
| Vehicle Ramp | Articulated Slewing Stern Ramp |
| Straight aft to 45 Starboard | |
| Telescoping Boom Crane | 12.3 mt @ 15 m, 18.2 mt @ 10 m/13.6 Lt @ 49.2 feet, 20.1 Lt @ 32.8 feet |
Ships
USNS Spearhead (EPF-1), Delivered
USNS Choctaw County (EPF-2), Delivered
USNS Millinocket (EPF-3), Delivered
USNS Fall River (EPF-4), Delivered
USNS Trenton (EPF-5), Delivered
USNS Brunswick (EPF-6), Delivered
Carson City (EPF-7), under construction
Yuma (EPF-8), under construction
Bismark (EPF-9), under construction
Burlington (EPF-10), under construction
EPF-11
EPF-12