Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) 21, the future USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul, completed acceptance trials in Lake Michigan. Trials included a full-power run, maneuverability testing, and surface and air detect-to-engage demonstrations of the ship’s combat system. Major systems and features were demonstrated, including aviation support, small boat launch handling and recovery and machinery control and automation. Now that trials are complete, the ship will undergo final outfitting and fine-tuning before delivery to the U.S. Navy. USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul (LCS-21) is the eleventh Freedom-variant LCS designed and built by the Lockheed Martin-led industry team and is slated for delivery to the U.S. Navy early next year.
«LCS-21 joins a fleet of sister ships delivering unique flexibility and capability to the U.S. Navy», said Joe DePietro, Lockheed Martin vice president and general manager, Small Combatants and Ship Systems. «Freedom-variant LCS are inherently capable to serve freedom of navigation, drug interdiction and humanitarian missions, and with additional capabilities onboarded, they can serve further focused missions. On LCS 21’s acceptance trials, we successfully tested the ship’s maneuverability, automation and core combat capability».
The Freedom-variant LCS has completed four successful deployments, including LCS-7 (USS Detroit)’s deployment completed this summer. LCS-7 deployed to the U.S. Southern Command supporting the Martillo campaign – a multinational effort targeting illicit trafficking routes in Central American coastal waters.
Regarding LCS’ capabilities, U.S. Southern Commander Admiral Craig Faller recently stated, «LCS has proven to be an effective and adaptable platform capable of multiple missions in our area of responsibility. It has become an end-game enabler for U.S. Coast Guard law enforcement authorities who disrupt transnational criminal organizations and the smuggling of deadly narcotics. Adding the LCS to our Enhanced Counter Narcotics Operation is helping save lives».
Unique among combat ships, the focused-mission LCS is designed to support mine countermeasures, anti-submarine and surface warfare missions and is easily adapted to serve future and evolving missions. The Freedom-variant LCS is:
- Flexible – Forty percent of the hull is easily reconfigurable, able to integrate Longbow Hellfire Missiles, 30-mm guns, manned and unmanned vehicles designed to meet today’s and tomorrow’s missions.
- Lethal – LCS is standard equipped with Rolling Airframe Missiles (RAM) and a Mark 110 gun, capable of firing 220 rounds per minute.
- Powerful – LCS has gas turbines, diesel engines and water jets that together generate 85 MW/113,600 horsepower making LCS capable of speeds in excess of /46 mph/74 km/h.
- Automated – LCS has the most efficient staffing of any combat ship.
«I am pleased to see another successful acceptance trials on Lake Michigan», said Jan Allman, CEO of Fincantieri Marinette Marine. «Together with our partners, Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Navy, our proud shipbuilding team puts in long hours to deliver a proven warship for the fleet».
Ship Design Specifications
| Hull | Advanced semiplaning steel monohull |
| Length Overall | 389 feet/118.6 m |
| Beam Overall | 57 feet/17.5 m |
| Draft | 13.5 feet/4.1 m |
| Full Load Displacement | Approximately 3,200 metric tons |
| Top Speed | Greater than 40 knots/46 mph/74 km/h |
| Range at top speed | 1,000 NM/1,151 miles/1,852 km |
| Range at cruise speed | 4,000 NM/4,603 miles/7,408 km |
| Watercraft Launch and Recovery | Up to Sea State 4 |
| Aircraft Launch and Recovery | Up to Sea State 5 |
| Propulsion | Combined diesel and gas turbine with steerable water jet propulsion |
| Power | 85 MW/113,600 horsepower |
| Hangar Space | Two MH-60 Romeo Helicopters |
| One MH-60 Romeo Helicopter and three Vertical Take-off and Land Tactical Unmanned Air Vehicles (VTUAVs) | |
| Core Crew | Less than 50 |
| Accommodations for 75 sailors provide higher sailor quality of life than current fleet | |
| Integrated Bridge System | Fully digital nautical charts are interfaced to ship sensors to support safe ship operation |
| Core Self-Defense Suite | Includes 3D air search radar |
| Electro-Optical/Infrared (EO/IR) gunfire control system | |
| Rolling-Airframe Missile Launching System | |
| 57-mm Main Gun | |
| Mine, Torpedo Detection | |
| Decoy Launching System |
Freedom-class
| Ship | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Homeport |
| USS Freedom (LCS-1) | 06-02-2005 | 09-23-2006 | 11-08-2008 | San Diego, California |
| USS Fort Worth (LCS-3) | 07-11-2009 | 12-07-2010 | 09-22-2012 | San Diego, California |
| USS Milwaukee (LCS-5) | 10-27-2011 | 12-18-2013 | 11-21-2015 | San Diego, California |
| USS Detroit (LCS-7) | 08-11-2012 | 10-18-2014 | 10-22-2016 | San Diego, California |
| USS Little Rock (LCS-9) | 06-27-2013 | 07-18-2015 | 12-16-2017 | San Diego, California |
| USS Sioux City (LCS-11) | 02-19-2014 | 01-30-2016 | 11-17-2018 | Mayport, Florida |
| USS Wichita (LCS-13) | 02-09-2015 | 09-17-2016 | 01-12-2019 | Mayport, Florida |
| USS Billings (LCS-15) | 11-02-2015 | 07-01-2017 | 08-03-2019 | Mayport, Florida |
| USS Indianapolis (LCS-17) | 07-18-2016 | 04-18-2018 | 10-26-2019 | Mayport, Florida |
| USS St. Louis (LCS-19) | 05-17-2017 | 12-15-2018 | 08-08-2020 | Mayport, Florida |
| USS Minneapolis/St. Paul (LCS-21) | 02-22-2018 | 06-15-2019 | ||
| USS Cooperstown (LCS-23) | 08-14-2018 | 01-19-2020 | ||
| USS Marinette (LCS-25) | 03-27-2019 | |||
| USS Nantucket (LCS-27) | 10-09-2019 | |||
| USS Beloit (LCS-29) | 07-22-2020 | |||
| USS Cleveland (LCS-31) |