Seapower - October 2008

ciencies as compared to other first-of-class warships.”

Baribeau was not at liberty to release specific findings of the board.

conducted, but launches of rigid-hull inflatable boats were conducted from the boat door in the port side.

Though no mission packages were onboard for sea trials, the mission bay and flight deck impressed observers with their sheer size. Moosally said the flight deck for the helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles is larger than those of the fleet’s cruisers and destroyers.

The Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey put Freedom through acceptance trials in early September, with good news for Lockheed Martin’s team.

“LCS 1 performed extremely well during this operation,” said Capt. James Murdoch, the Navy’s LCS program manager. “There is much more work to be done, but we are very encouraged by the results we’ve seen so far.”

“The board found the ship to be capable, well built and inspection-ready,” Baribeau said. “The ship was presented to the board with high levels of completion in production and test. These levels of completion, coupled with good quality installations and excellent craftsmanship, resulted in relatively low numbers of material defi-

MISSION PACKAGES

The Navy introduced the ASW mission package Sept. 19 at Point Mugu, Calif., making one of each package type available for testing by the LCS. The surface warfare package was rolled out at Dahlgren, Va., July 11, and the first MCM package was presented in 2007.

A second surface warfare package is being produced, and the Navy has proposed procurement of two MCM and one surface warfare package in 2009, a fourth surface warfare package in 2010 and the second ASW package in 2011. A total of 64 packages are planned for the Navy — 24 MCM, 24 surface warfare and 16 ASW.

The three types of packages have some elements in common, such as the MQ-8B Fire Scout vertical-takeoff unmanned aerial vehicle, which first flew with its Brite Star II electro-optical/infrared sensor and Tactical Common Data Link Aug. 9.

The WLD- 1 Remote Multimission Vehicle, an unmanned surface vehicle that operates just under the surface with an exposed mast, is equipped with MCM systems and also can tow acoustic arrays for the ASW package. The WLD- 1 is under evaluation on an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer.

The MH-60R helicopter supports the surface warfare and ASW missions with its sensors, torpedoes and missiles, while the MH-60S version can carry five different MCM systems.

The surface warfare package includes the Mk50 30mm rapid-fire gun, two of which can be quickly installed in modules of the ship’s superstructure. The Non-Line-of-Sight Launch System also can be inserted on the ship, enabling the LCS to fire the Precision Attack Missile against fast-maneuvering boats, among other targets.

The ASW package also includes, among other systems, an unmanned surface vehicle — a rigid-hull inflatable boat — to tow an acoustic source, passive acoustic array and a dipping sonar for detection of submarines.