Navy receives USS St. Louis at shipyard ceremony in Wisconsin

Feb. 7 (UPI) -- The Navy announced Friday that it has accepted delivery of the future USS St. Louis during a ceremony at the Fincantieri Marinette Marine shipyard in Marinette, Wis.

The St. Louis is the 10th Freedom-variant littoral combat ship designed and built by an industry team at FMM, led by Lockheed Martin, which delivered the vessel on Feb. 6.

Later this year, the ship will be commissioned and transported to Naval Station Mayport, Fla.

"This is a great day for the Navy and our country with the delivery of the future USS St. Louis, which will carry into her future an important naval historical legacy," LCS program manager Capt. Mike Taylor said in a press statement. "I am extremely proud when I see the results of all the hard work and dedication of the Navy, Lockheed Martin and FMM team in building the Navy the nation needs."

According to the Navy, the ship will be the seventh of its name in naval service.

The first U.S. Navy warship named St. Louis was laid down in February 1827 at the Washington Navy Yard. It was decommissioned in 1865 following service during the Civil War.

The St. Louis is the first LCS delivered to the Navy in 2020. Four more -- USS Kansas City, USS Oakland and USS Mobile along with USS Minneapolis-St. Paul, which is under construction at FMM along with several others slated for later delivery -- are planned for delivery this year.

Littoral combat ships are designed to move quickly in near-shore environments but are capable of operations in the open-ocean and combatting submarines, mines and swarms of small craft.