PASCAGOULA, Miss., July 11, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) announced today that the amphibious assault ship America (LHA 6) has departed the company's Ingalls Shipbuilding division, sailing to the West Coast in preparation for her Oct. 11 commissioning in San Francisco.
"Today I share the pride of thousands of Ingalls shipbuilders who have worked tirelessly in constructing this magnificent large-deck amphibious warship," said Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias. "While watching America sail away from our shipyard, we know our sailors and Marines have another battle-ready asset with which to perform their missions. We've built amphibious warships at Ingalls for nearly 50 years, and we look forward to continuing to build them for years to come."
A photo accompanying this release is available at: http://newsroom.huntingtoningalls.com/ImageLibrary/detail.aspx?MediaDetailsID=892.
America is the first ship in the U.S. Navy's new class of amphibious assault ships. The ship is 844 feet long and 106 feet wide and displaces 44,971 long tons. Its fuel-efficient gas turbine propulsion system can drive the ship in excess of 20 knots. America was delivered to the U.S. Navy on April 10.
"The crew and I have been looking forward to this day for quite a while," said Capt. Robert A. Hall Jr., America's commanding officer. "The sailors and Marines serving aboard America have been training hard and working hard to ensure the ship is ready to get underway, and their efforts are now paying off. We'll definitely miss the Gulf Coast communities and the outstanding Southern hospitality we've been shown since arriving, but we're looking forward to getting underway, sailing back to our families in San Diego and to joining the fleet."
America can accommodate a crew of 1,204 (with 102 officers) and 1,871 troops. America is capable of carrying a Marine Expeditionary Unit, including Marine helicopters, MV‐22 Osprey VTOL tiltrotor aircraft and F‐35B Joint Strike Fighters (JSF) STOVL aircraft.
America is designed for survivability with increased aviation capacity, including an enlarged hangar deck, realignment and expansion of the aviation maintenance facilities, a significant increase in available stowage for parts and support equipment, and increased aviation fuel capacity. Similar to its predecessors, the ship will be able to operate as the flagship for an expeditionary strike group. Prior to America, Ingalls built five Tarawa-class (LHA 1) ships and eight Wasp-class (LHD 1) ships.
Huntington Ingalls Industries designs, builds and manages the life-cycle of the most complex nuclear and conventionally powered ships for the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard. For more than a century, HII's Newport News and Ingalls shipbuilding divisions in Virginia and Mississippi have built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. HII also provides engineering and project management services expertise to the commercial energy industry, the Department of Energy and other government customers. Headquartered in Newport News, Va., HII employs more than 39,000 people operating both domestically and internationally. For more information, visit:
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