US military shipbuilder Ingalls Shipbuilding, part of Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), has received a fourth contract modification from the U.S. Navy for $107 million to provide advance procurement activities for amphibious assault ship LHA 9.
This contract modification brings the total advance funding for LHA 9 to $457 million.
The company is the only builder of large-deck amphibious ships for the US Navy.
Its first amphibious assault ship, Iwo Jima-class USS Tripoli (LPH 10), was delivered back in 1996. Since then, the company has built five Tarawa-class (LHA 1) ships, eight Wasp-class (LHD 1) ships, and the first in the new America class of amphibious assault ships (LHA 6) in 2014.
The second ship in the America class, Tripoli (LHA 7), was delivered to the Navy in early 2020. Bougainville (LHA 8), which has officially started fabrication in October 2018, is still under construction. Bougainville will be the first in its class built with a redesigned and stronger main deck.
Kari Wilkinson , Ingalls Shipbuilding president, said: “The amphibious warship production line is a critical component of our nation’s defense industrial base. This funding will strengthen our suppliers and sustain jobs across the country in support of LHA 9 construction.”