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Jo Bonner News

18 Dec 2017

US Navy Commissions USS Little Rock

Blue crew of the freedom variant littoral combat ship USS Little Rock (LCS 9) man the rails during the ship's commissioning ceremony Dec. 16, 2017 in Buffalo, N.Y. (U.S. Navy photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin)

The U.S. Navy officially welcomed its newest littoral combat ship into its fleet during a December 16 commissioning ceremony in Buffalo, N.Y. Constructed at Marinette Marine Corporation, Marinette, Wisc., USS Little Rock (LCS 9) is the Navy’s fifth freedom-variant LCS. The fast, shallow draft vessel has a modular design capable of implementing a variety of mission packages as an asset to the fleet in both the shallow coastal regions as well trans-Atlantic service. The ship was commissioned next to the first USS Little Rock, a Galveston-class guided missile cruiser (CLG 4).

14 Dec 2017

US Navy to Commission LCS Little Rock

Artist rendering of the littoral combat ship USS Little Rock (LCS 9). (U.S. Navy photo illustration by Jay M. Chu)

The U.S. Navy will commission its newest Freedom-variant littoral combat ship (LCS), the future USS Little Rock (LCS 9), during a December 16 ceremony at the Canalside waterfront in Buffalo, N.Y. The future USS Little Rock is the 10th littoral combat ship to enter the fleet and the fifth of the Freedom-variant design. It is the second warship named for the Arkansas state capital and will be commissioned alongside the first USS Little Rock (CL 92), which serves as a museum at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park.

20 Jul 2015

Christening of LCS Little Rock

The Navy’s newest littoral combat ship (LCS), the future USS Little Rock (LCS 9), will be christened Saturday, July 18, during a 10 a.m. CDT ceremony at Marinette Marine Corporation's shipyard in Marinette, Wisconsin. The event will be webcast live at http://navylive.dodlive.mil under the webcast section. The Honorable Ray Mabus, secretary of the Navy will deliver the ceremony’s principal address. Janée L. Bonner, spouse of the Honorable Josiah “Jo” Bonner, former U.S. representative of Alabama, is the ship’s sponsor. Bonner will officially christen the ship Little Rock. "The christening of the future USS Little Rock is a celebration of our incredible shipbuilding industry and the men and women who worked so hard to build this great ship," said Mabus.

24 Jun 2013

WRDA to the Wise

May 15, 2013 was a very good day for the nation’s barge and towing operators, as well as shippers of grain, coal, chemicals, petroleum products, aggregate materials, and agri-input products. It was also a good day for our nation’s economy and for its consumers. The Senate passed, by a vote of 83-14, a long-overdue Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), last reauthorized in 2007. Six years may not seem like a long time to await action on Capitol Hill. But since 57% of the locks and dams on the nation’s inland waterways system have exceeded their economic design life expectancy of 50 years…

31 May 2012

Austal Leads LCS Suppliers to Washington, DC

Discuss Future of Supporting the Program before Congress. Austal brought together representatives of over 50 suppliers from 25 states to build support for the future of the U.S. Navy’s LCS program. The representatives of the Independence-variant LCS industrial base gathered on May 16 and 17 for a conference and congressional outreach. Austal USA’s President and Chief Operating Officer, Joe Rella, was joined by Rear Admiral James A. Murdoch, Program Executive Officer, Littoral Combat Ships, and Congressman Jo Bonner (R-AL) in welcoming the attendees and briefing them on the U.S.

04 May 2012

Austal Sets Keel of U.S. Navy's JHSV 3

On May 3, 2012, Austal held a keel-laying ceremony for the third Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV), one of nine Austal-designed 103-meter U.S. Navy Joint High Speed Vessels under contract with the U.S. Navy. Austal invited Representative Jo Bonner to authenticate the keel. He was assisted by Jeff Cellon who is an “A” Class welder that has been part of the Austal team since May of 2010. A traditional keel-laying ceremony marks the first significant milestone in the construction of the ship.

09 Dec 2011

Austal Opens Washington Office

Providing local support to Navy customer. Austal has announced the opening of Austal USA’s Washington DC Operations Office at 100 M Street, SE, Suite 310. The facility will allow Austal Government Programs and Business Development personnel to use the location as a base of Washington DC operations. The new Washington office director, Mr. Ronald Mahaffey, is a veteran of Huntington-Ingalls Shipbuilding, where he served as Director of Surface Combatant Operations. Prior to that assignment, Ron spent nearly 14 years in the post-delivery environment, working in the Ingalls Planning Yard on both the DD 963 and CG 47 programs. Ron retired from the Navy in 1989 as a Chief Warrant Officer (CWO4) with over 30 years of expertise in the electronics field.

14 Nov 2011

Austal Lays Keel for Second JHSV

Three Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV) currently under construction. On November 8, 2011, Austal held a keel-laying ceremony for its second Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV), Choctaw County (JHSV 2), one of seven Austal-designed 103-meter U.S. Navy Joint High Speed Vessels under contract with the U.S. Department of Defense. Captain Henry W. Stevens, III (USN), Strategic and Theater Sealift Program Manager, PMS 385, served as the Authenticator for today’s ceremony. He was assisted by Brandon Mims. Brandon is an “A” Class welder that has been part of the Austal team since June of 2007.

09 Oct 2011

AUSTAL STARTS FABRICATION OF JHSV 3

Austal announces that Congressman Jo Bonner (R-AL) commemorated the official start of fabrication for the third Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV 3), one of seven Austal-designed 103-meter U.S. Navy Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV) under contract with the U.S. Department of Defense. “The race is on,” said Austal USA President and Chief Operating Officer, Joe Rella, “the world is about to learn just how much value Austal’s investments in modular ship fabrication offers our Navy and Military Sealift Command customers.

28 Mar 2011

Navy Names Austal’s Next Two Littoral Combat Ships

Austal hosted a visit by the Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) Ray Mabus on Friday, March 25. He was joined by U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions, Congressman Jo Bonner, Austal USA President and Chief Operating Officer, Joe Rella, and Mobile Mayor Sam Jones in formally announcing the names that he has selected for the first two Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) of the recently awarded 10-ship contract to Austal. LCS 6 will be named USS Jackson and LCS 8 will be named USS Montgomery. Secretary Mabus announced the names during his meeting with approximately 600 Austal production employees…

10 Nov 2009

Austal Opens New Shipbuilding Facility

Photo courtesy Austal

Austal has officially opened its new Modular Manufacturing Facility (MMF), equipping its U.S. shipyard with the ability to build up to three 328-ft-plus vessels each year. Phase One of the new $88m facility boasts 35,000m2 of manufacturing space under one roof, including a 7900m2 warehouse, as well as paved parking for more than 2000 vehicles. An official ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the completion of Phase One was held at Austal’s Mobile, Ala. shipyard. The event was attended by more than 300 dignitaries, including Alabama Governor Bob Riley, U.S.

08 Oct 2008

LCS 2 Christened

The General Dynamics Littoral Combat Ship Team (GD LCS Team) christened the LCS 2 Independence October 4, on the waters of the at the Austal USA shipyard. Present at the Christening Ceremony were over 1,000 guests and dignitaries. The Ship Sponsor was Doreen A. Scott, wife of the 10th Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy, Terry D. Scott. She was joined by her daughter, Maid of Honor, Lauren A. Scott, but her daughter, Matron of Honor Ensign Lindsay Fatz, USN, was out of the country on orders.

07 Jun 2004

Austal USA to be Contracted for Littoral Combat Ship

The U.S. Navy has awarded a team that includes Austal USA, a $79 million contract to develop a final design for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), along with options to build two ships. Total contract value including both shipbuilding options is $536 million. With its unrivalled expertise in large, high-speed aluminum vessels, Austal, as the designer and builder of the proposed LCS vessels, is a major contributor to the team which is led by General Dynamics-Bath Iron Works. The team’s…

20 Jan 2006

Austal Hosts Keel Laying Ceremony For LCS

Following the official opening of the new ship construction facility last November, Austal USA today hosted a traditional US Navy keel-laying ceremony to signify the start of construction on the Navy’s new breed of surface combatant, the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). Whilst the ceremonies have been updated to reflect modern ship construction techniques, Navy tradition dictates that each new ship for the service be honoured on four historic ceremonial occasions: keel-laying, christening (or launching), commissioning and decommissioning. The object of today’s ceremony is a component in the modular construction arrangement that will form part of a 127 metre aluminium trimaran capable of providing high speeds, multi-mission capability and superior aviation operations.

27 Feb 2003

Keels Laid at Ingalls

(DDG 97) and Mesa Verde (LPD 19) Feb. Miss. in this class to be erected at Ingalls Operations. honor of the Mesa Verde National Park in Southwestern Colorado. Verde is scheduled for delivery in late 2005. the world is the flag of the United States of America," said U.S. Rep. Scott McInnis from Colorado's 3rd Congressional District. "This is a unique class of amphibious ships that is being designed and built using state-of-the-art, innovative design tools and equally innovative management processes," said John McIntire, vice president, Tech-Marine Business, Inc., and former Navy technical director of the LPD 17 program. "It is a great credit to all of you in the shipbuilding community who broke ground in this endeavor that the Mesa Verde will be the most mission-capable…