Sept. 1 (UPI) -- The future USS Little Rock, a fifth Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ship, has successfully completed U.S. Navy acceptance trials.
The trials, conducted over a five-day period while in port and underway, demonstrated the performance of the ship's propulsion plant, auxiliary systems and the ship's handling.
The Navy said the vessel completed a full-power run along with all associated steering and maneuvering events and also surface and air self-defense detect-to-engage exercises.
"Of particular note was completion of a full-power demonstration utilizing 100 percent of available propulsion power," LCS Program Manager Capt. Michael Taylor said in a press release. "This mode of operation was previously restricted due to a design issue which is now resolved.
"Little Rock's performance during her acceptance trial is a testament to the hard work of the Marinette workforce. I look forward to placing the ship in the capable hands of her crew early this fall."
The Little Rock was built by Lockheed Martin and Fincantieri Marinette Marine in Marinette, Wis. It completed the acceptance trials with the highest score of any Freedom-variant LCS to date.
"Our team has raised the bar for Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ship performance," Joe DePietro, vice president of small surface combatants and ship systems at Lockheed, said in a press release. "This was an exceptional trial -- the best of the class to date, thanks to the extraordinary contributions of all Freedom-variant LCS teammates."
Lockheed Martin and Fincantieri Marinette Marine are now preparing Little Rock for delivery in the coming weeks.
