U.S. Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer announced that the next Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship will be named USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) and the next Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ship will be named USS Beloit (LCS 29).
The future USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) is named in honor of Santa Barbara, Calif. and is the third ship to bear the name. The future USS Beloit (LCS 29) is named in honor of Beloit, Wis. and is the first ship to bear the name.
The future USS Santa Barbara will be built by Austal USA in Mobile, Ala. This ship will be 421 feet long with a beam length of 103.7 feet and be capable of operating at speeds in excess of 40 knots.
USS Beloit will be constructed by Lockheed Martin with Marinette Marine in Marinette, Wis. This ship will be 387 feet long, have a beam length of 57.4 feet and travel at speeds in excess of 40 knots.
The U.S. Navy has accepted delivery of 16 LCss. Including the recent contract modifications, a total of 32 LCSs have been procured with 10 ships under construction (LCS 15, 17, 19-26).
LCS is a modular, reconfigurable ship, designed to meet validated fleet requirements for surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare and mine countermeasures missions in the littoral region. An interchangeable mission package is embarked on each LCS and provides the primary mission systems in one of these warfare areas.
