Ingalls to Build US Warship LH8
Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) announced that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division has been selected to build the U.S. Navy’s next large-deck amphibious assault warship, LHA 8. Ingalls has also been selected to perform the majority of the contract design work for the U.S. Navy’s amphibious warfare ship replacement, known as LX(R).The U.S. Department of Defense announced both contracts June 30.
The LH8 contract – which includes the planning, advanced engineering and procurement of long-lead material – is valued at $272,467,161, though the award includes options that, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of the contract to $3.1 billion.
“This award adds to the successful amphibious shipbuilding legacy at Ingalls since the 1950s,” said Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias. “Our shipbuilders have proven this success by delivering 14 vital and capable large-deck warships to our nation’s amphibious fleet. This contract shows the Navy’s confidence in our ability to build these ships to the highest-quality standards and to do so affordably for the American taxpayers. We look forward to delivering another great ship.”
Ingalls is currently the sole builder of large-deck amphibious ships for the Navy. The shipyard delivered its first amphibious assault ship, the Iwo Jima-class USS Tripoli (LPH 10), in 1966. Ingalls has since built five Tarawa-class (LHA 1) ships, eight Wasp-class (LHD 1) ships and the first in a new class of amphibious assault ships, America (LHA 6), in 2014. The second ship in that class, Tripoli (LHA 7), is currently under construction and scheduled to launch next summer.
“We appreciate the partnerships we continue to have with the Navy/Marine Corps team,” Cuccias said. “We are also proud of the support we get from a large, nationwide industrial base of suppliers, who remain an essential ingredient to the construction of these capable and survivable amphibious warships.
“Ingalls operates in an 800-acre shipbuilding facility that is optimized to build several classes of complex ships simultaneously,” Cuccias said. “As Mississippi’s largest manufacturing employer, we also appreciate the stable partnership we’ve had with the state and the investments they’ve made in our success throughout our nearly 80 years in Pascagoula.”
LX(R) will replace the Navy’s Harpers Ferry- and Whidbey Island-class dock landing ships and will use the same hull as the San Antonio (LPD 17) class. Ingalls has delivered 10 of the LPD 17 ships to the Navy, is currently building the 11th, Portland (LPD 27), and has received more than $300 million in advance procurement funding for the 12th, Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28).
“With a hot production line, skilled workers, a strong supplier base and deep experience building San Antonio-class LPD amphibious warships, Ingalls stands ready to close the gap between LPD 28 and LX(R), the next generation amphibious warships the Navy-Marine Corps team needs today,” Cuccias said.
