Camp Montford Point News

General Dynamics NASSCO recently delivered USNS Montford Point (MLP-1), the lead ship of the Mobile Landing Platform (MLP) class, to the U.S. Navy. The ship is named in honor of Camp Montford Point, the Jacksonville, N.C., site where the first African-American Marines were trained. Construction of the USNS Montford Point began in May 2011, incorporating a “design-build” approach to improve the ship’s readiness for production. The 785-foot-long auxiliary ship will serve as a floating base for amphibious operations, and operate as a transfer point between large ships and small landing craft. “Congratulations to the NASSCO-Navy-MSC team and to the entire group who built this ship,” said Fred Harris, president of General Dynamics NASSCO.

General Dynamics NASSCO San Diego Shipyard the venue of the christening by Alexis (Jackie) Bolden. The U.S. Navy's newest ship, USNS Montford Point (MLP-1) named in honor of Camp Montford Point, the Jacksonville, N.C., site where the first African-American Marines were trained, is the first ship of three Mobile Landing Platform (MLP) vessels being designed and built by NASSCO. More than 1,000 people attended the Saturday morning christening ceremony at NASSCO's San Diego shipyard. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus was the ceremony's principal speaker.