TSAMTO, April 11. The US Department of Defense announced the signing by the US Navy Command with Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) of an additional contract for the development of a technical design and construction of the LPD-32 class "San Antonio".
The cost of the agreement amounted to $1.295 billion. The work will be carried out at enterprises in Pascagoula (pcs.Mississippi, 82%), Crozette (Virginia, 3%), Beloite (pcs.Wisconsin, 2%), New Orleans (Louisiana, 2%), as well as other production sites in the United States (11%) and are expected to be completed by September 2029.
The LPD-32 will become the 16th San Antonio-class DVKD and the third LPD-17 Flight II class vessel, and will be used to perform a wide range of tasks - from participating in combat operations to providing humanitarian assistance and assistance to victims of natural disasters.
In June 2022, the US Navy signed a preliminary contract with Ingalls Shipbuilding worth $ 240 million for the purchase of equipment with long production times with an option to develop a technical design of the LPD-32 DVKD.
The total cost of contracts with HII for the construction of the LPD-32 is estimated at $ 1.56 billion, but the total cost of the ship is higher because the US Navy buys some systems separately. Earlier, in March of this year, it was announced that the cost of the LPD-32 would be from $1.9 to $2 billion. For comparison, according to the budget documents for 2024, the cost of construction of LPD-30, 31 and 32 is 1.5, 1.53 and 1.56 billion dollars, respectively. The total cost of these ships, including equipment provided by the state, is estimated at $1.86, 1.96 and 1.92 billion, respectively.
Rising costs are forcing the Pentagon to stop building ships of the LPD-32 series and look for a less expensive way to equip the USMC.
As reported by TSAMTO, Ingalls Shipbuilding is the only contractor for the construction of the San Antonio-class DVKD. The implementation of the program began in 1993 and initially provided for the delivery of 11 ships to the US Navy, which should replace the obsolete LPD-4, LSD-36, LKA-113 and LST-1179 class transports. Later, it was decided to place orders for the construction of two more San Antonio-class DVKDs – LPD-28 Fort Lauderdale and LPD-29 Richard M McCool Jr.
In March 2019, Ingalls Shipbuilding signed a contract with the US Navy to develop a working design and build the first LPD-17 Flight II version of the LPD-30 Harrisburg. The cost of this agreement was $1.47 billion. Steel cutting for the construction of the LPD-30 began in April 2020. On April 3, 2020, a contract worth $1.508 billion was signed with the company for the development of a working project and the construction of the LPD-31. The LPD-17 Flight II will replace the LSD-41 Whidbey Island/LSD-49 Harpers Ferry class amphibious dock transports in service.
The lead ship of the LPD-17 series was transferred to the US Navy in 2005. To date, 12 DVKDs have been adopted by the US Navy. At Ingalls Shipbuilding, the LPD-29 Richard M McCool Jr., LPD-30 Harrisburg and Pittsburgh (LPD-31) DVKDs are under construction.
