GALVESTON, Texas, Sept. 22, 2012 - The U.S. Navy
commissioned the nation's third Littoral Combat Ship -
USS Fort Worth (LCS 3) - in Galveston, Texas today,
officially placing the ship designed and constructed by a
Lockheed Martin-led team [NYSE: LMT] into active service.
Fort Worth, the second of the Freedom-variant in the LCS
class, successfully passed Acceptance Trials in May and was
delivered to the U.S. Navy in June, two months ahead of
schedule.
"Today's global security challenges demand new and improved
solutions, and the Littoral Combat Ship represents the
innovation that is needed to respond to this dynamic
environment," said Bob Stevens, Lockheed Martin Chairman
and CEO. "We are incredibly proud of the men and
women on our team who helped design and build Fort Worth
and honored to serve those that will rely on this ship to
support U.S. security goals."
Now formally commissioned, Fort Worth will transit to its
homeport in San Diego, Calif., where it will be integrated
into the fleet and the industry-Navy team will conduct
additional program testing and crew training.
This ship class will support the Navy in defeating growing
littoral, or close-to-shore, threats and provide access and
dominance in coastal waters, helping keep critical
commercial shipping lanes open worldwide.
The Lockheed Martin-led LCS team includes ship builder
Marinette Marine Corporation (MMC), a Fincantieri company,
and naval architect Gibbs & Cox, as well as hundreds of
teammates worldwide.
Milwaukee (LCS 5) and Detroit (LCS 7) are under
construction at MMC's shipyard. Little Rock (LCS 9) and
Sioux City (LCS 11) were awarded in March 2012 and are in
the early stages of procuring long-lead materials.
About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global
security and aerospace company that employs about 120,000
people worldwide and is principally engaged in the
research, design, development, manufacture, integration and
sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and
services. The corporation's net sales for 2011 were
$46.5 billion.
About Fincantieri
Fincantieri is one of the world's largest shipbuilding
groups, which in over 200 years of maritime history has
built more than 7,000 vessels. It is world leader in cruise
ship construction and a reference player in other sectors,
from naval vessels to cruise ferries, from megayachts to
special high value-added vessels, and ship repairs and
conversions. Headquartered in Trieste, the Group has over
10,000 employees and eight shipyards in Italy alone.
Fincantieri operates in the United States through its
subsidiary Fincantieri Marine Group (FMG). This company,
which serves both civilian and government customers,
including the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard, has three
shipyards (Marinette Marine, Bay Shipbuilding, Ace Marine),
all located in the Great Lakes region. Since 2002
Fincantieri has built or has orders to build more than 100
ships, worth a total of € 22 billion, and has developed
numerous prototypes in each of its business segments.
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