US Navy awards $1.3 billion contract for new amphibious ship

News, US April 4, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

The U.S. Navy has awarded a $1.3 billion contract to Ingalls Shipbuilding for the construction of its next San Antonio-class amphibious transport ship. The Ingalls Shipbuilding company has been given $240 million in advance for the project.

In total, Ingalls Shipbuilding would be paid $1.54 billion for the construction of the ship. The weapons, radars, sensors, and other equipment would be bought separately for the ship increasing the cost even further.

According to the Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Mike Gilday the U.S. Navy had been pondering upon this deal for a long time because of concerns about the program’s rising cost.

Gilday said that in total the project is expected to cost somewhere between $1.9 billion to $2 billion, which is far more than any of the previous ships built in the same category. He added that rising costs of the U.S. Navy’s projects have contributed to the Pentagon’s decision to curtail the production of amphibious ships of similar class. The U.S. Navy is now seeking a less expensive way to acquire amphibious ships in the future.

Ingalls spokeswoman Kimberly Aguillard said that despite several changes that the U.S. Navy has incorporated into the design of San Antonio-class ships and external challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic, labor shortfalls, and rising inflation, Ingalls has held the costs steady.

The U.S. Navy currently operates 12 San Antonio-class ships, while at least two ships are being built. The U.S. Navy planned to commission at least 26 the San Antonio-class amphibious ships into its fleet, however, the rising production cost of the ships would result in lesser numbers.

*^{U.S. Navy’s LPD 29 amphibious transport dock flight deck being lifted at Ingalls Shipbuilding. (Image Credit: Ingalls Shipbuilding)}*

The San Antonio-class of amphibious transport ship is 200 meters long and 32 meters wide platform that can sail at a speed of 25 to 40 miles an hour. It was designed to replace the Austin-class amphibious ships and it is also called a Landing Platform Dock or LPD.

The class is fitted with the integrated Ship Self-Defense System (SSDS). The system fuses the radars and other sensors and controls the weapons systems for an automated fast reaction capability against air threats.

The ship carries a standard armament of Bushmaster guns and rolling airframe missiles. The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps have also made modifications in the initial design to incorporate a vertical launch system (VLS) into San Antonio-class ships so they could field larger offensive missiles. The original ship concept includes two 8-cell Mk 41 VLS in the bow. The redesigned version of the ships would add Tomahawk cruise missiles to support Marines ashore with little modification to the combat system.