USS Detroit (LCS-7) was the fourth Freedom-class littoral combat ship of the United States Navy.[8] She is the sixth ship to be named after the city of Detroit, Michigan.[1][9]

USS Detroit on 30 April 2018
History
United States
NameDetroit
NamesakeDetroit
Awarded17 March 2011[1]
BuilderMarinette Marine[1]
Laid down8 November 2012[2]
Launched18 October 2014[3]
Sponsored byMrs. Barbara Levin
Christened18 October 2014
Acquired12 August 2016[4]
Commissioned22 October 2016[5]
Decommissioned29 September 2023
HomeportNaval Station Mayport[1]
Identification
MottoSwift Vigilance
StatusStricken, Final Disposition Pending[1]
Badge
General characteristics
Class and typeFreedom-class littoral combat ship
Displacement3,500 metric tons (3,900 short tons) full load[6]
Length378.3 ft (115.3 m)[1]
Beam57.4 ft (17.5 m)[1]
Draft13.0 ft (3.7 m)[1]
Propulsion2 Rolls-Royce MT30 36 MW gas turbines, 2 Colt-Pielstick diesel engines, 4 Rolls-Royce waterjets
Speed40 knots (46 mph; 74 km/h) (sea state 3)
Range3,500 nmi (6,500 km) at 18 knots (21 mph; 33 km/h)[7]
Endurance21 days (336 hours)
Boats & landing
craft carried
11 m RHIB, 40 ft (12 m) high-speed boats
Complement15 to 50 core crew, 75 mission crew (Blue and Gold crews)
Armament
Aircraft carried
NotesElectrical power is provided by 4 Isotta Fraschini V1708 diesel engines with Hitzinger generator units rated at 800 kW each.

Design

edit

In 2002, the U.S. Navy initiated a program to develop the first of a fleet of littoral combat ships.[10] The Navy initially ordered two monohull ships from Lockheed Martin, which became known as the Freedom-class littoral combat ships after the first ship of the class, USS Freedom.[10][11] Odd-numbered U.S. Navy littoral combat ships are built using the Freedom-class monohull design, while even-numbered ships are based on a competing design, the trimaran hull Independence-class littoral combat ship from General Dynamics.[10] The initial order of littoral combat ships involved a total of four ships, including two of the Freedom-class design.[10]  Detroit is the fourth Freedom-class littoral combat ship to be built.

Detroit includes additional stability improvements over the original Freedom design; the stern transom was lengthened and buoyancy tanks were added to the stern to increase weight service and enhance stability.[12] The ship will also feature automated sensors to allow "conditions-based maintenance" and reduce crew overwork and fatigue issues that Freedom had on her first deployment.[13]

Construction and career

edit
 
Commissioning of Detroit on 22 October 2016

The ceremonial “laying of the keel” was in early November 2012 at the Marinette Marine shipyards in Marinette, Wisconsin.[14] The ship was launched on 18 October 2014.[3] The US Navy accepted Detroit into service on 12 August 2016; the ship was commissioned on 22 October 2016.[15][5] She is assigned to Littoral Combat Ship Squadron Two. The ship is sponsored by Mrs. Barbara Levin[3] (Wife of Senator Carl Levin)

On 30 December 2016, Detroit participated in a homeport shift ceremony that took place at Naval Station Mayport. The ship was previously scheduled to be based out of Naval Base San Diego but was reassigned while en route.[16]

On 13 January 2017, Detroit completed her first flight deck evolutions to certify the flight deck for future air operations. The landings and VERTREP were conducted by the "Swamp Foxes" of HSM-74. On 8 March 2017, Detroit fired a vertical-launched AGM-114 Hellfire missile, the first such launch from a littoral combat ship.[17] The Hellfire system is meant to engage small vessels and strike _targets on land.

In January 2020, Detroit conducted freedom of navigation and intelligence-gathering operations in the Caribbean Sea.[18]

Detroit, the fourth ship of the Freedom-class, was planned to be inactivated in FY 2022, and to join the Out of Commission in Reserve (OCIR) list, along with three other ships in the class: Freedom, Fort Worth, and Little Rock.[19] However, in the final 2022 budget, Congress blocked the Navy's request to retire the three ships.[20]

On 21 June 2023 Detroit got underway for its final deployment to the 4th fleet AOR to support regional cooperation and security.[21]

On 27 September 2023 Detroit returned to Mayport in preparation to decommission the ship two days later.[22]

On 29 September 2023, Detroit was decommissioned at Mayport.[23][24]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "USS Detroit (LCS-7)". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
  2. ^ "Nation's Seventh Littoral Combat Ship Takes Shape as Lockheed Martin Team Lays The Keel" (Press release). Lockheed Martin. 8 November 2012. Retrieved 8 November 2012.
  3. ^ a b c "Lockheed Martin-Led Team Launches Future USS Detroit" (Press release). Lockheed Martin. 18 November 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
  4. ^ "Navy Accepts Delivery of Future USS Detroit (LCS 7)" (Press release). United States Navy. 15 August 2016. NNS160815-23. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  5. ^ a b "USS Detroit Commissioned in Namesake City" (Press release). United States Navy. 24 October 2016. NNS161024-01. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  6. ^ "Littoral Combat Ship Class (LCS)". America's Navy. U.S. Navy. Archived from the original on 19 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  7. ^ "LCS Littoral Combat Ship". Program Executive Office, Ships. Archived from the original on 8 August 2007. Retrieved 8 March 2009.
  8. ^ "Marinette Marine receives $376M Navy contract". Milwaukee Business Journal. 18 March 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  9. ^ "Announcement of LCS 5 and LCS 7 Names" (PDF). United States Navy. 18 March 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  10. ^ a b c d "US Navy Fact File: Littoral Combat Ship Class – LCS". US Navy. Archived from the original on 2 March 2015. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  11. ^ O'Rourke, Ronald (4 May 2010). "Navy Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Program: Background, Issues, and Options for Congress" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  12. ^ Osborn, Kris (27 June 2014). "Navy Engineers LCS Changes". www.dodbuzz.com. Monster. Archived from the original on 29 April 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  13. ^ Freedberg Jr., Sydney J. (4 April 2014). "Sleepless In Singapore: LCS Is Undermanned & Overworked, Says GAO". breakingdefense.com. Breaking Media, Inc. Archived from the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  14. ^ Levin, Carl (9 November 2012). "USS Detroit Is Important to a City and a Nation". levin.senate.gov. Archived from the original on 11 December 2012. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  15. ^ "Navy accepts new Littoral Combat Ship". Spacewar.com.
  16. ^ Daraskevich J (30 December 2016). "Mayport Officials Welcome 2 New Littoral Combat Ships". Florida Times Union. Retrieved 30 December 2016.[permanent dead link]
  17. ^ Maass, Ryan (8 March 2017). "U.S. Navy test fires surface to surface missile module". upi.com.
  18. ^ Woody, Christopher (31 January 2020). "A US warship sailed along Venezuela's cost to gather intelligence and send a message to Maduro". Business Insider.
  19. ^ Manaranche, Martin (18 June 2021). "U.S. Navy Issues FY22 Shipbuilding And Decommissioning Totals To Congress". Naval News. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
  20. ^ LaGrone, Sam (10 March 2022). "Last Minute FY 22 $728.5B Defense Bill Funds 13 Navy Ships, 12 F/A-18s; Saves 3 LCS From Decommissioning". news.usni.org. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  21. ^ "USS Detroit Deploys to Support Regional Cooperation and Security". United States Navy. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  22. ^ "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  23. ^ "Navy to Decommission Littoral Combat Ships USS Little Rock, USS Detroit This Week". usni.org. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  24. ^ "News Release – USS Detroit (LCS 7) Decommissions". DVIDS. 22 October 2016. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
edit
  NODES
Note 2