Northrop building Coast Guard cutter

PASCAGOULA, Miss., Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Northrop Grumman is building a fourth National Security Cutter for the U.S. Coast Guard under a $480 million, fixed-price incentive contract.

Construction and delivery will be performed at the company's Pascagoula facility.

"These ships are a significant part of the Coast Guard's recapitalization program," said Irwin F. Edenzon, vice president and general manager, Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding-Gulf Coast. "This contract emphasizes the Coast Guard's confidence in the NSC's design and demonstrated performance, as well as the progress we've made with our quality and process improvement initiatives."

The National Security Cutters that comprise the Coast Guard's Legend class are the flagships of the Coast Guard fleet. They are replacing the 378‐foot Hamilton class High Endurance Cutters, which entered service in the 1960s.

Two of the eight ships planned in the program have been commissioned and are executing Coast Guard missions. The third ship in the class, the Stratton (WMSL 752), was christened in July and is more than 65 percent complete; it will be delivered to the Coast Guard next year.

Northrop Grumman said the NSC 4 contracted will be 418 feet long with a 54-foot beam. It will have a top speed of 28 knots, a range of 12,000 nautical miles, an endurance of 60 days and a crew of about 110.