Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division delivered amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli (LHA-7) to the U.S. Navy on February 28, 2020. The USS Tripoli (LHA-7) will be commissioned later this year before sailing to its homeport of San Diego, California.
«Thousands of shipbuilders worked tirelessly to ensure the successful delivery of this highly-capable warship», Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias said. «We are pleased to continue working closely with the Navy to deliver exceptional ships using the highest safety and quality standards».
Ingalls is currently the sole builder of large-deck amphibious ships for the Navy. America-class ships are designed to enhance Marine Corps aviation, capable of supporting the tilt-rotor MV-22 Osprey and F-35B Joint Strike Fighter. When USS Tripoli (LHA-7) enters the fleet, it will be the flagship of an Amphibious Ready Group, strategically positioning Marine Expeditionary Units ashore across a full spectrum of missions, including humanitarian, disaster relief, maritime security, antipiracy and other operations while providing air support for ground forces.
«The LHA team is proud to witness the delivery of the 15th large-deck amphibious ship built at Ingalls», said Bryan Williams, USS Tripoli (LHA-7) program manager. «The completion of the Tripoli is a great complement to our longstanding legacy of building state-of-the-art warships».
Tripoli is the third ship to bear the name that commemorates the capture of Derna in 1805 by a small force of Marines and nearly 370 soldiers from 11 other nations. The battle, memorialized in the Marines’ Hymn with the line, «to the shores of Tripoli», brought about a successful conclusion to the combined operations of the First Barbary War.
General Characteristics
| Builder | Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc., Ingalls Operations, Pascagoula, Mississippi |
| Date Deployed | Delivered to the fleet in on April 10, 2014 |
| Propulsion | Two marine gas turbines, two shafts, 70,000 total brake horsepower/52,199 kW, two 5,000 horsepower/3,728 kW auxiliary propulsion motors |
| Length | 844 feet/257.3 m |
| Beam | 106 feet/32.3 m |
| Displacement | Approximately 45,000 long tons full load /45,722 metric tons |
| Speed | 20+ knots/23+ mph/37+ km/h |
| Crew | 1,059 (65 officers) |
| Load | 1,687 troops (plus 184 surge) |
| Armament | 2 RAM (Rolling Airframe Missile) launchers |
| 2 NATO Sea Sparrow launchers with ESSM (Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile) | |
| 2 20-mm Phalanx CIWS (Close-In Weapon System) mounts | |
| 7 twin 12,7-mm/.50 cal. machine guns | |
| Aircraft | 9 F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters (JSF) STOVL (Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing) aircraft |
| 4 AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters | |
| 4 CH-53E Super Stallion helicopters | |
| 12 MV-22B Osprey VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) tiltrotors | |
| 2 MH-60S Sea Hawk Search and Rescue (SAR) helicopters | |
| UH-1Y Huey helicopters |
Ships
| Ship | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Homeport |
| USS America (LHA-6) | 07-17-2009 | 06-04-2012 | 10-11-2014 | Sasebo, Japan |
| USS Tripoli (LHA-7) | 06-22-2014 | 05-01-2017 | ||
| USS Bougainville (LHA-8) |