MOBILE, Ala. Littoral Combat Ship Montgomery (LCS 8), the fourth Independence-variant LCS built by Austal, successfully completed its acceptance trials May 6, 2016, in the Gulf of Mexico.

I am excited that the Austal team has achieved another major milestone in the LCS program. said Craig Perciavalle, President of Austal USA. With seven LCS under construction, our focus on leveraging lessons learned from ship to ship is sharp. The momentum gained on this program is great to see and will position us well in the future.

This milestone achievement involved the execution of intense comprehensive tests by the Austal-led industry team while underway, which demonstrated to the Navy the successful operation of the ships major systems and equipment. While underway, the ship successfully performed launch and recovery operations of the 11-meter rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB), a four-hour full power run, surface and air self-defense detect-to-engage exercises, and demonstrated the ship’s maneuverability performing tight turns and accomplishing speeds in excess of 40 knots. Acceptance trials are the last significant milestone before delivery of the ship, which is expected soon.

Perciavalle went on to say, The successful completion of these trials is tribute to not only the hard work and dedication of the men and women who make up Austal's talented shipbuilding team but is a credit to entire Mobile community. This is truly a team effort between our expert shipbuilders and our local suppliers, local governments and supportive community.

The LCS program is continuously gaining momentum at Austal USA with seven ships currently under construction. Gabrielle Giffords (LCS 10) and Omaha (LCS 12) are preparing for trials. Manchester (LCS 14) was recently christened and launched. Final assembly is well underway on Tulsa (LCS 16) and modules for Charleston (LCS 18) and Cincinnati (LCS 20) are under construction in Austal's module manufacturing facility.

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About Austal and General Dynamics Mission Systems
Austal, as prime contractor, is teamed with General Dynamics Mission Systems (GDMS) for the Independence-variant LCS program. General Dynamics is the ship systems integrator, responsible for the design, integration and testing of the navigation, C4I, and aviation systems. Learn more here

Austal is a global defense prime contractor and a designer and manufacturer of defense and commercial ships. For more than 25 years Austal has been a leader in the design, construction and maintenance of revolutionary ships for Governments, Navies and Ferry operators around the world. More than 250 vessels have been delivered in that time.

Click here to see Austal USA's full press release.

Austal Media Contact:uspress@austalusa.com