By Troy Turner
MOBILE – The U.S. Navy needs more ships, and it needs its existing vessels ready for action.
There were 290 battle force ships in the Navy’s fleet at the start of fiscal year 2024, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Naval planners hope to upscale that number to the mid-to-high 300s by 2053.
The Navy has 88 ships under contract, with 66 of them under construction.
Shipbuilders and workers in Mobile, Alabama, are among those answering the call.
Alabama shipyards trend upward
Austal USA recently celebrated the start of construction with the Navy’s Landing Craft Utility (LCU) vessel at its Mobile ship manufacturing facility. The company earned a $91.5 million contract in September 2023 that includes three LCUs and associated support efforts.
LCUs are carried aboard amphibious assault ships to the objective area and used across a range of military operations to deliver vehicles, personnel and cargo from sea-to-shore and back. These connectors provide a heavy-lift capability and can carry about the same payload capacity as seven C-17 aircraft.
The new contract in Mobile comes among a notable increase in the Navy’s needs and Austal’s role in providing and supporting them.
The Department of Defense in late 2023 awarded Austal USA an $868 million contract modification for the design and construction of three expeditionary medical ships.
Earlier this month, the Navy announced Austal’s most recent contract of almost $12 million “to exercise an option for Littoral Combat Ships industrial post-delivery availability support for the USS Pierre.”
Mobile is one of two sites in the U.S. that builds Littoral Combat Ships, and several contracts for either new ships or support for existing ships in that class keeps Austal as a steady partner for the fleet.
Nearby, Alabama Shipyard LLC facilities also are working with the Navy on various contracts to service and upgrade naval vessels. (See related AlaDefense.com story links below.)
Most recently, the Navy awarded an $18 million contract to Alabama Shipyard for a routine dry-dock overhaul of the Military Sealift Command’s replenishment oiler USNS Laramie.
The steady uptick of Naval contracts flowing into Mobile are indicative of the Navy, Department of Defense and Congress all looking at the fleet’s future and debating how much and how fast it should grow in light of today’s threats to national security. However, one commonality is that they agree the United States needs to support its industrial base relied upon to build and maintain its ships.
How to grow a navy
Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Lisa Franchetti recently called investment in the defense industrial base a top priority.
“We know we need a larger Navy,” said Franchetti. “Every study since 2016 has shown that, and I think the most effective way to work on that right now is to invest in our industrial base, invest in the workforce, invest alongside our industry partners… to speed up the production and throughput of the ships and submarines that we need.”
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“All of the industry partners are facing some of the same challenges in the workforce,” Franchetti said. “So, we’re working alongside industry to generate some of these pipelines where people can be recruited, they can come in and get training, and they come out with a certification and then immediately go and be employed.”
That’s good news for companies like those in Mobile seeking Navy contracts, and for workers seeking a good job.
Supporting the Marines
It’s not just the Navy interested in what Alabama shipbuilders and workers are doing.
Austal recently hosted Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Karsten S. Heckl, deputy commandant for combat development and integration, as a key speaker at its LCU event. LCUs have been a key amphibious asset to the Marines for decades.
“The LCU provides strategic value and versatility to the Navy-Marine Corps team,” said Heckl. “These landing craft will significantly enhance our sea-based Marine Air-Ground Task Forces and Marine Expeditionary Units, providing them with unparalleled flexibility, and the capability to maneuver Marines, sailors and equipment in environments unreachable by other means.”
Austal is ready for the work, said Dave Growden, company vice president of new construction programs.
“Austal USA is eager to begin construction on the first of these important connectors for the U.S. Navy,” he said. “Having General Heckl join the Austal USA team today in honor of this milestone sends a strong message on the critical role this platform plays in supporting expeditionary operations for the Navy and Marine Corps.
“We are excited to roll these vessels down the assembly line and into the fleet.”
Austal USA’s steel line has been active since beginning operation two years ago, the company reported. “Steel shipbuilding production is ongoing for two Navy Towing, Salvage and Rescue Ships and the Navy’s 90,800-square-foot Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock Medium.
“Austal USA also holds multi-ship contracts for the Navy’s TAGOS-25 ocean surveillance ship and the U.S. Coast Guard’s Heritage-class Offshore Patrol Cutter program, which is scheduled to start construction this summer.”
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Troy Turner is the editor and senior consultant for AlaDefense.com. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Information from the Department of Defense, U.S. Navy and Austal USA were used for this report.
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