PASCAGOULA, Miss., June 4 (UPI) -- Northrop Grumman's contract for a new amphibious landing ship is seen as a vote of confidence for U.S. Gulf Coast shipbuilding.
The U.S. Navy late last week selected Northrop's Pascagoula shipyard to build the next LHA amphibious landing ship at a fixed-price cost of $2.4 billion.
The award continues the Navy's history of building amphibious vessels at the Mississippi shipyard that was battered in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina at a time when U.S. military planners were seeing an increased role for amphibious operations on coastal, or littoral, regions of the world.
"This contract award reinforces the U.S. Navy's confidence that we have recovered from the effects of Hurricane Katrina and are capable of meeting the warfighters' needs in a timely and cost effective manner," Northrop Vice President Philip Teel said in a statement.
Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., said the support for the Pascagoula yard was "a big part of our Gulf Coast's ongoing economic recovery as well."
Pascagoula has recovered since Katrina caused $500 million in damage. It has been busy on carrier overhauls and construction of Aegis-class destroyers and the landing ship USS Makin Island, although there were shortages of skilled labor after the hurricane scattered the workforce and drew many away to other jobs in the region.
The new amphibious ship, designated LHA 6, is scheduled for delivery in 2012 and will replace one of the Tarawa-class ships currently in service. The ship will emphasize air operations by increasing the flight deck size while losing the well deck.
