USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS-10), the U.S. Navy’s newest littoral combat ship, was brought to life by her crew before a crowd of nearly 2,500 guests at Pier 21 at the Port of Galveston, June 10.
Admiral William Moran, Vice Chief of Naval Operations, delivered the ceremony’s principal address before officially commissioning the ship into service.
«As we man the rails today, blood gets pumped, the ship comes alive, and the heart begins to beat», said Moran. «It’s the blood that is infused by the spirit, the attitude, and the courage of its namesake. We are so proud to be part of Gabrielle Giffords’ legacy to the United States».
Following the commissioning, Doctor Jill Biden, the ship’s sponsor and wife of former Vice President Joe Biden, gave the time-honored Navy tradition of ordering the crew to «man our ship and bring her to life»!
The crowd sounded its approval as the crew ran aboard the ship to man their assigned stations and complete the ceremony of bringing the ship into active service to end a story that began more than five years ago.
In 2012 the Secretary of the U.S. Navy announced the future ship’s name, and USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS-10) became the 16th ship to be named for a woman and only the 13th ship to be named for a living person since 1850.
The ship is commanded by Commander Keith Woodley, a native of Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, who leads the core crew of 50 officers and enlisted personnel.
During the ceremony Woodley praised the crew for their dedication and hard work in getting the ship ready for service.
«This is not just a new ship. This is a new class of ship and that makes it even more challenging for the crew», said Woodley. «They have risen to that challenge and performed exceptionally well in getting this ship ready for service».
Most other Navy surface combatant ships have a crew of 300 or more Sailors, but Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) like Gabrielle Giffords have more automated systems and much smaller crews than their counterparts. Gabrielle Giffords’ crew is just 73 at the ship’s commissioning.
«It’s not easy being an LCS Sailor», said Gunner’s Mate 1st Class Mark Dobrinin. «We have to wear so many hats and be trained on systems and duties outside of our normal job specialty due to the small crew size. Every enlisted Sailor here volunteered for the program and we’re excited to serve on USS Gabrielle Giffords».
The 3,200-ton USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS-10) was built by Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama. The ship is 421 feet/128.3 m in length and has a beam of 103 feet/31.4 m and a navigational draft of 14.8 feet/4.5 m. The ship uses two gas turbines and two diesel engines to power four steerable waterjets to speeds in excess of 40 knots/46 mph/74 km/h.
Littoral combat ships are fast, agile, mission-focused platforms designed to operate in near-shore environments, while capable of open-ocean tasking, and win against 21st-century coastal threats such as submarines, mines, and swarming small craft.
A fast, maneuverable, and networked surface combatant, USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS-10) is capable of operating independently or with an associated strike group. It is designed to defeat growing littoral threats and provide access and dominance in coastal waters.
USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS-10) will depart Galveston and begin her transit to her homeport at Naval Base San Diego.
The Independence Variant of the LCS Class
| PRINCIPAL DIMENSIONS | |
| Construction | Hull and superstructure – aluminium alloy |
| Length overall | 421 feet/128.3 m |
| Beam overall | 103 feet/31.4 m |
| Hull draft (maximum) | 14.8 feet/4.5 m |
| PAYLOAD AND CAPACITIES | |
| Complement | Core Crew – 40 |
| Mission crew – 36 | |
| Berthing | 76 in a mix of single, double & quad berthing compartments |
| Maximum mission load | 210 tonnes |
| Mission Bay Volume | 118,403 feet3/11,000 m3 |
| Mission packages | Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) |
| Surface Warfare (SUW) | |
| Mine Warfare (MIW) | |
| PROPULSION | |
| Main engines | 2 × GE LM2500 |
| 2 × MTU 20V 8000 | |
| Waterjets | 4 × Wartsila steerable |
| Bow thruster | Retractable azimuthing |
| PERFORMANCE | |
| Speed | 40 knots/46 mph/74 km/h |
| Range | 3,500 NM/4,028 miles/6,482 km |
| Operational limitation | Survival in Sea State 8 |
| MISSION/LOGISTICS DECK | |
| Deck area | >21,527.8 feet2/2,000 m2 |
| Launch and recovery | Twin boom extending crane |
| Loading | Side ramp |
| Internal elevator to hanger | |
| Launch/Recover Watercraft | Sea State 4 |
| FLIGHT DECK AND HANGER | |
| Flight deck dimensions | 2 × SH-60 or 1 × CH-53 or multiple Unmanned Aerial Vehicles/Vertical Take-off and Land Tactical Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs/VTUAVs) |
| Hanger | Aircraft stowage & maintenance for 2 × SH-60 |
| Launch/Recover Aircraft | Sea State 5 |
| WEAPONS AND SENSORS | |
| Standard | 1 × 57-mm gun |
| 4 × 12.7-mm/.50 caliber guns | |
| 1 × Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) launcher | |
| 3 × weapons modules | |
Independence-class
| Ship | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Homeport |
| USS Independence (LCS-2) | 01-19-2006 | 04-26-2008 | 01-16-2010 | San Diego, California |
| USS Coronado (LCS-4) | 12-17-2009 | 01-14-2012 | 04-05-2014 | San Diego, California |
| USS Jackson (LCS-6) | 08-01-2011 | 12-14-2013 | 12-05-2015 | San Diego, California |
| USS Montgomery (LCS-8) | 06-25-2013 | 08-06-2014 | 09-10-2016 | San Diego, California |
| USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS-10) | 04-16-2014 | 02-25-2015 | 06-10-2017 | San Diego, California |
| USS Omaha (LCS-12) | 02-18-2015 | 11-20-2015 | ||
| USS Manchester (LCS-14) | 06-29-2015 | 05-12-2016 | ||
| USS Tulsa (LCS-16) | 01-11-2016 | |||
| USS Charleston (LCS-18) | 06-28-2016 | |||
| USS Cincinnati (LCS-20) | 04-10-2017 | |||
| USS Kansas City (LCS-22) | ||||
| USS Oakland (LCS-24) |
