Secretary of the Navy Gordon R. England has named the Navy’s next
amphibious transport dock ship in honor of the city of Anchorage, Alaska.
“Anchorage is an important seaport and one of our nation’s great
cities. For many years thousands of young men and women from Alaska have stepped
forward to serve America as a sailor or Marine. The warm hospitality of the people
of Anchorage has always welcomed the fleet. The USS Anchorage will project
American power to the far corners of the earth and support the cause of freedom
well into the 21st century," England said.
Northrop Grumman Ship Systems, Avondale Operations in New Orleans, La.,
will build Anchorage. The 684-foot long amphibious transport dock ship will carry
a crew of about 360 Navy sailors and 700 Marines. The ship will be used to
transport and land Marines, as well as, their equipment and supplies in support of
amphibious assault, special operations, and expeditionary warfare missions. These
personnel and supplies will be delivered via embarked landing craft air cushions,
conventional landing craft or amphibious vehicles and can be augmented by
helicopters or vertical take off and landing aircraft.
Anchorage will play a vital role in the success of the Navy/Marine
Corps team. It will carry joint combat forces to the fight with increased lift
capacity, superior command and control capabilities and improved ship
survivability. It will give expeditionary strike groups greater speed, agility and
reach, and will help us to dominate the near land battle space. These ships
incorporate substantial quality of service improvements to include sit-up berths, a
ship services mall, an enhanced fitness facility and a state of the art learning
resource center. The previous USS Anchorage served for nearly forty years,
including recent service in the Global War on Terrorism. It was decommissioned in
2003.