Ingalls Shipbuilding division has announced that they have commenced fabrication of the USS PITTSBURGH (LPD 31), the US Navy’s newest SAN ANTONIO Class amphibious transport dock, with the first 100 tons of steel cut for the ship.
The US Navy has so far received 12 SAN ANTONIO class ships, and three more remain under construction, including RICHARD M. MCCOOL (LPD 29), HARRISBURG (LPD 30) and PITTSBURGH (LPD 31), the latter two of which are Flight II LPDs.
The Flight II LPDs are the next amphibious ships to replace WHIDBEY ISLAND (LSD 41) and HARPERS FERRY (LSD 49) classes of dock landing ships. Amphibious transport docks are a major part of the US Navy’s expeditionary force concept, deployed with a US Marine Corps Air-Ground Task Force for amphibious and expeditionary crisis response operations ranging from deterrence and joint-force enablement to humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
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