US Navy commissions final littoral combat ship after years of issues

The U.S. Navy welcomed its last littoral combat ship to active service Saturday, marking an end of a program beset by mechanical issues , ballooning costs and early retirements. The service commissioned the USS Cleveland during a ceremony in Cleveland, Ohio, the last of an LCS era that began on Nov. 8, 2008, with the introduction of the USS Freedom. “Today we celebrate the sailors who breathe life into this ship,” said acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao, who spoke at the ceremony. “To the officers and crew of USS Cleveland, today is your day.” The Cleveland, which is the 16th and final Freedom-class littoral combat ship to join the fleet, is the fourth Navy vessel to be named after the Ohio city. The first in its lineage was a cruiser commissioned in 1903 that served in World War I, followed by a light cruiser that earned 13 battle stars during World War II and an Austin-class amphibious transport dock that participated in the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm between 1967 and 2011. The Cleveland will now travel to its new homeport at Naval Station Mayport, Florida. Littoral combat ships were designed to support asymmetrical combat operations, providing capabilities such as mine countermeasures, surface warfare and anti-submarine warfare. But they have faced countless problems since their inception in 2001. The U.S. Navy paused deliveries of the Freedom-variant in 2021, 13 years after the lead ship of the class was delivered, citing a design flaw with the ship’s transmission. RELATED The US has counter-mine ships homeported in the Middle East. Are they effective? Some military and defense experts argue the Independence-class littoral combat ship equipped with the MCM mission package falls short of its predecessor. By Riley Ceder The Navy later identified cracks in the hulls of six Independence-class littoral combat ships — beginning in 2019 — after the service noticed a structural defect in the USS Coronado, which was commissioned in 2014. The problems affected the vessels’ ability to travel at certain speeds and prohibited the platform from transiting through waters with wave heights of eight feet or higher. Beginning in December 2015, five littoral combat ships experienced mechanical issues over a 10-month span. Concerns over the longevity of the small surface combatants were notable, considering they have a service life of 25 years. The Navy eventually decommissioned the USS Freedom and USS Independence , the lead ships in both their classes, after the sea service said the ships needed significant upgrades that would cost too much to be worthwhile. The ships had served for 13 and 11 years, respectively, before their early retirement. Finances were also an issue. Each vessel costs roughly $500 million to manufacture, despite the Navy’s initial estimate of $220 million. The Defense Department acknowledged the ship’s shortcomings, too. A 2013 report from the Pentagon’s testing wing said that both littoral combat ship variants were “not survivable in a combat environment.” The service has decommissioned seven LCS in total since the program’s launch, according to the Navy. The service currently maintains 28 littoral combat ships, though the service initially sought between 30 and 60. Several Independence-class LCS are outfitted with a mine countermeasures mission package that allows the vessels to deploy autonomous technologies for minesweeping. Three LCS with the MCM mission package are currently home-ported in Bahrain, in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. The Pentagon’s testing wing published a March 13 report saying it could not determine the reliability and effectiveness of the LCS with the MCM mission package. About Riley Ceder Riley Ceder is a reporter at Military Times, where he covers breaking news, criminal justice, investigations, and cyber. 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