The division of American shipbuilding company Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), Ingalls Shipbuilding, has delivered amphibious transport dock USS Richard M. McCool Jr. (LPD 29) to the U.S. Navy.
As informed, the delivery ceremony took place on April 11. Richard M. McCool Jr. is the 13 San Antonio-class ship delivered by Ingalls and is the final Flight I transition ship before Ingalls moves into production of the LPD Flight II line.
Check out the journey to delivery for Richard M. McCool Jr. (LPD 29). From start fab to delivery, our Ingalls shipbuilders have worked hard to reach this significant milestone in construction and look forward to continuing the production of the vital LPD Flight II line. pic.twitter.com/ckCjdTYfs8
The keel for the unit was laid in 2019, while the launching ceremony took place in 2022. USS Richard M. McCool Jr. was christened in June 2022 at the shipbuilder’s yard.
“The LPD 29 delivery demonstrates how our shipbuilders are enabling our combined Navy and Marine Corps team,” said Kari Wilkinson , president of Ingalls Shipbuilding.
“It is the most recent example of what U.S. industry and government partnerships can accomplish by putting another player on the field. We will now bring the full weight of this collaborative team to bear on steady-state Flight II execution going forward.”
Ingalls has two Flight II LPDs under construction including Harrisburg (LPD 30) and Pittsburgh (LPD 31).
In March 2023, Ingalls was awarded a modification to the contract for the procurement of the detail design and construction of Philadelphia (LPD 32), the 16th ship in the San Antonio class and the third LPD Flight II.
The San Antonio class LPDs can support a variety of crisis response, special operations and expeditionary warfare missions. LPDs can operate independently or as part of amphibious readiness groups, expeditionary strike groups, or joint task forces.