USS St. Louis (LCS-19) is a Freedom-class littoral combat ship of the United States Navy. She is the seventh ship in naval service named after St. Louis, Missouri.[8]
![]() USS St. Louis during her commissioning ceremony on 8 August 2020
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History | |
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Name | St. Louis |
Namesake | St. Louis |
Awarded | 29 December 2010[4] |
Builder | Marinette Marine[4] |
Laid down | 17 May 2017[5] |
Launched | 15 December 2018[1] |
Sponsored by | Barbara Broadhurst Taylor |
Christened | 15 December 2018[1] |
Acquired | 6 February 2020[2] |
Commissioned | 8 August 2020[3] |
Identification |
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Motto | Gateway to Freedom |
Status | Active |
Badge | ![]() |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Freedom-class littoral combat ship |
Displacement | 3,500 metric tons (3,900 short tons) full load[7] |
Length | 378.3 ft (115.3 m) |
Beam | 57.4 ft (17.5 m) |
Draft | 13.0 ft (4.0 m) |
Propulsion | 2 Rolls-Royce MT30 36 MW gas turbines, 2 Colt-Pielstick diesel engines, 4 Rolls-Royce waterjets |
Speed | 45 knots (52 mph; 83 km/h) (sea state 3) |
Range | 3,500 nmi (6,500 km) at 18 knots (21 mph; 33 km/h)[6] |
Endurance | 21 days (336 hours) |
Boats & landing craft carried | 11 m RHIB, 40 ft (12 m) high-speed boats |
Complement | 15 to 50 core crew, 75 mission crew (Blue and Gold crews) |
Armament |
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Aircraft carried | |
Aviation facilities | Flight Deck, Hangar Bay |
Notes | Electrical power is provided by 4 Isotta Fraschini V1708 diesel engines with Hitzinger generator units rated at 800 kW each. |
Design
editIn 2002, the US Navy initiated a program to develop the first of a fleet of littoral combat ships.[9] The Navy initially ordered two monohull ships from Lockheed Martin, which became known as the Freedom-class littoral combat ships after the first ship of the class, USS Freedom.[9][10] Odd-numbered U.S. Navy littoral combat ships are built using the Freedom-class monohull design, while even-numbered ships are based on a competing design, the trimaran hull Independence-class littoral combat ship from General Dynamics.[9] The initial order of littoral combat ships involved a total of four ships, including two of the Freedom-class design.[9] St. Louis is the tenth Freedom-class littoral combat ship to be built.
Construction and career
editSt. Louis was built in Marinette, Wisconsin by Marinette Marine.[11] The ship was christened and launched on 15 December 2018.[1] She was commissioned on 8 August 2020 and is assigned to Littoral Combat Ship Squadron Two.
References
edit- ^ a b c "Littoral Combat Ship 19 (St. Louis) Christened And Launched" (Press release). Lockheed Martin. 15 December 2018. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
- ^ "Navy Accepts Delivery of Future USS St. Louis (LCS 19)" (Press release). United States Navy. 7 February 2020. NNS200207-13. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
- ^ "U.S. Navy Littoral Combat Ship USS St. Louis Joins the Fleet" (Press release). United States Navy. 8 August 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
- ^ a b "St. Louis (LCS-19)". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
- ^ "Lockheed Martin-Led Team Lays Keel on 19th Littoral Combat Ship" (Press release). Lockheed Martin. 17 May 2017. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
- ^ "Freedom Class LCS Littoral Combat Ship". Retrieved 18 June 2015.
- ^ "Navy Names Littoral Combat Ship" (Press release). U.S. Navy. 20 April 2015. Retrieved 11 June 2015.
- ^ O'Rourke, Ronald (4 May 2010). "Navy Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Program: Background, Issues, and Options for Congress" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
- ^ "U.S. Navy Fact File: Littoral Combat Ships". U.S. Navy. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
- This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain. The entry can be found here.