HII delivers new class amphibious assault ship to US Navy
Grace Jean, Washington, DC -
IHS Jane's Defence Weekly
13 April 2014
About 900 US Navy sailors and marines marched onto amphibious assault ship America (LHA 6) on 10 April 2014 during a handover ceremony at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Source: US Navy
Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) has handed over the
lead ship of a new amphibious assault ship class designed to optimise operations of the US Marine Corps' MV-22 Osprey tiltrotors and the F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters.
America (LHA 6) was delivered to the US Navy (USN) on 10 April at HII's Ingalls Shipbuilding division in Pascagoula, Mississippi.
The America-class ships are replacing the USN's Tarawa-class amphibious assault ships. The first two ships of the class,
America and
Tripoli (LHA 7), have been designed without a well deck but feature an enlarged hangar and belowdeck spaces to better support aircraft maintenance. Well deck capability is expected to be restored in the third ship of the class in response to changed requirements since the inception of the America class.
The ship is expected to commission in late 2014 in San Francisco, California, and will be homeported in San Diego.