Huntingtin Ingalls Industries (HII) announced Friday that its Pascagoula, Miss.-based Ingalls Shipbuilding division was awarded a $1.3 billion modification to a previously awarded contract from the Navy for the detail design and construction of amphibious transport dock (LPD) 32. The resulting fixed-price-incentive contract totals $1.54 billion. The LPD will be the 16th in the San Antonio class and the third Flight II LPD.
The San Antonio-class is a major part of the Navy’s 21st-century amphibious assault force. The 684'x105' ships are used to embark and land Marines, their equipment, and supplies ashore via air cushion or conventional landing craft and amphibious assault vehicles, augmented by helicopters or vertical takeoff and landing aircraft such as the MV-22 Osprey.
An LPD amphibious transport dock is equipped with the following:
- Two 30-mm Bushmaster II cannons for surface defense
- Two Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) launchers for air defense
- Four CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters
- Two LCACs, one LCU, and 14 AAVs
- Four diesel engines that can reach a maximum speed of more than 22 knots.
“Our shipbuilders are dedicated to delivering these ships to our Navy and Marine Corps partners, having done so for over two decades,” Ingalls Shipbuilding President Kari Wilkinson said in a statement. “This program is strong and has enabled the Department of Navy and Ingalls to establish a formidable capability based on a mature design, an ever-increasingly efficient production line, and a team of shipbuilders that keep the Navy’s critical industrial base network across the country strong.”
In June 2022, Ingalls Shipbuilding was awarded a $240 million advance procurement contract for LPD 32 from the Navy to provide long-lead-time material and advance construction activities. The funds from this contract allowed Ingalls to begin purchasing long-lead-time material and major equipment across a supplier network of nearly 400 companies in 30 states.
Ingalls Shipbuilding is the sole builder of the entire San Antonio class of ships and currently has three LPDs under construction, including Richard M. McCool (LPD 29); Harrisburg (LPD 30), the first Flight II LPD; and Pittsburgh (LPD 31), which began fabrication in September 2022. LPD Flight II is the next generation amphibious ship to replace Whidbey Island (LSD 41) and Harpers Ferry (LSD 49) classes of dock landing ships.
| General Specifications, San Antonio-class LPD Flights I and II |
| Builder: Huntington Ingalls Industries |
| Propulsion: Four sequentially turbocharged marine Colt-Pielstick diesels, two shafts, 41,600 hp |
| Length: 684' |
| Beam: 105' |
| Displacement: Approximately 24,900 long tons (25,300 metric tons) full load |
| Draft: 23' |
| Speed: Over 22 knots (24.2 mph, 38.7 kph) |
| Crew: Ship's company: 383 sailors and three Marines. Embarked landing force: Flight I: 699 with surge capacity of 800; LPD 28/29:650; Flight II: 631. |
| Armament: Two Mk 46 30 mm close-in guns, fore and aft; two rolling airframe missile launchers, fore, and aft: 10 .50-caliber machine guns |
| Aircraft: Launch or land two CH-53E Super Stallion helicopters or two MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft or up to four AH-1Z or UH-1Y or MH-60 helicopters |
| Landing/Attack Craft: Two LCACs or one LCU; and 14 amphibious assault vehicles |
