USS Jackson (LCS-6) is an Independence-class littoral combat ship of the United States Navy, and the first ship to be named for Jackson, the capital of Mississippi.[1][4]

USS Jackson on 18 October 2021
History
United States
NameJackson
NamesakeJackson[1]
Awarded29 December 2010[2]
BuilderAustal USA[2]
Laid down18 October 2012[2]
Launched14 December 2013[2]
Sponsored byDr. Kate Cochran[1]
Acquired11 August 2015[2]
Commissioned5 December 2015[1]
HomeportSan Diego[2]
Identification
Motto
  • Victoribus Spolia
  • (To The Victors, The Spoils)
StatusActive
Badge
General characteristics
Class and typeIndependence-class littoral combat ship
Displacement2,307 metric tons light, 3,104 metric tons full, 797 metric tons deadweight[2]
Length127.4 m (418 ft)[2]
Beam31.6 m (104 ft)[2]
Draft14 ft (4.27 m)[2]
Propulsion
Speed40+ knots, 47 knots (54 mph; 87 km/h) sprint
Range4,300 nautical miles (8,000 km; 4,900 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)+
Capacity210 tonnes
Complement40 core crew (8 officers, 32 enlisted) plus up to 35 mission crew
Sensors and
processing systems
  • Sea Giraffe 3D Surface/Air RADAR
  • Bridgemaster-E Navigational RADAR
  • AN/KAX-2 EO/IR sensor for GFC
Electronic warfare
& decoys
  • EDO ES-3601 ESM
  • 4 × SRBOC rapid bloom chaff launchers
Armament
Aircraft carried2 × MH-60R/S Seahawks

Design

edit

In 2002, the U.S. Navy initiated a program to develop the first of a fleet of littoral combat ships.[5] The Navy initially ordered two trimaran hulled ships from General Dynamics, which became known as the Independence-class littoral combat ships after the first ship of the class, USS Independence.[5] Even-numbered U.S. Navy littoral combat ships are built using the Independence-class trimaran design, while odd-numbered ships are based on a competing design, the conventional monohull Freedom-class littoral combat ship.[5] The initial order of littoral combat ships involved a total of four ships, including two of the Independence-class design.[5] On 29 December 2010, the Navy announced that it was awarding Austal USA a contract to build ten additional Independence-class littoral combat ships.[6][7]

Jackson is the third Independence-class littoral combat ship to be built. Jackson was built by Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama.[1] Jackson is the second Independence-class ship to carry standard 7 metres (23 ft) long rigid-hulled inflatable boats and improvements in corrosion protection and propulsion over the original Independence (LCS-2) design.[7]

History

edit

Construction of Jackson began on 1 August 2011 with the first cutting of aluminum at Austal USA's Modular Manufacturing facility in Mobile, Alabama.[8] The name of the ship was announced on 5 October 2011.[9] The ship was launched on 14 December 2013.[2] Jackson was delivered to the Navy on 11 August 2015 and placed into service that day.[2] The ship was commissioned in a 5 December 2015 ceremony at Gulfport, Mississippi.[1][10] She has been assigned to Littoral Combat Ship Squadron One[11]

Jackson underwent the first of three shock trials[12] in waters off Florida on 16 June 2016, and the last being reported having been completed the week prior to 20 July 2016.[13] A charge of 10,000 pounds (4,500 kg) was set off at around 100 yards (91 m) with the ship wired with around 260 instruments to record the effects.[14]

On 23 May 2022, Jackson participated in the 28th Annual CARAT exercise with the Royal Thai Navy as a part of the Combined Task Force (CTF) 72. Jackson is attached to DESRON 7 and the US 7th Fleet. The MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter was recently deployed on the ship.[15]

Jackson is scheduled to be decommissioned sometime in 2024.[16]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d e f Church, Kathleen (7 December 2015). "USS Jackson (LCS 6) Commissioned" (Press release). Navy News Service. NNS151207-02. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "USS Jackson (LCS 6)". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  3. ^ "GE Marine's LM2500 gas turbines to power USS Jackson (LCS 6)". naval-technology.com. 1 November 2012. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  4. ^ "Navy Names Littoral Combat Ships Jackson and Montgomery" (Press release). U.S. Department of Defense. 25 March 2011. 243-11. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  5. ^ a b c d "US Navy Fact File: Littoral Combat Ship Class – LCS". US Navy. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  6. ^ Special from Navy Office of Information (29 December 2010). "Littoral Combat Ship Contract Award Announced" (Press release). Navy News Service. NNS101229-09. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  7. ^ a b Osborn, Kris (27 June 2014). "Navy Engineers LCS Changes". www.dodbuzz.com. Monster. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  8. ^ "Building of LCS moves forward". UPI. 5 August 2011. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  9. ^ "U.S. Navy Christens Independence-Class Littoral Combat Ship USS Jackson". Shipbuilding Tribune. 6 October 2011. Archived from the original on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
  10. ^ "Littoral combat ship USS Jackson commissioned in Gulfport". The Clarion Ledger. USA Today Network. Retrieved 6 December 2015.
  11. ^ "LCS Squadron 1". public.navy.mil. Archived from the original on 26 February 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  12. ^ "Simulated Ship Shock Tests/Trials". Institute for Defense Analyses. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.579.171.
  13. ^ Ziezulewicz, Geoff (20 July 2016). "USS Jackson completes full ship shock trials". United Press International. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  14. ^ LCS Survives First Shock Test, Preps For More, Christopher P. Cavas, Defense News, 17 June 2016, accessed 20 June 2016
  15. ^ Bahtić, Fatima (26 May 2022). "US Navy and Royal Thai Navy conduct CARAT exercise". Navaltoday.com. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  16. ^ Mongilio, Heather (27 September 2023). "Navy to Decommission Littoral Combat Ships USS Little Rock, USS Detroit This Week". USNI News. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
edit