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US Navy HSV 2 Swift Catamaran

HSV 2 Swift is one of US Military Sealift Command's two High- Speed Vessels and is part of the 26 ships in US Military Sealift Command's Prepositioning Program. HSV 2 Swift is capable of maintaining an average speed of 35 knots (65 km/h) or greater, loaded with 500 short tons, consisting of 350 personnel and military equipment. A minimum operating range of 1100 nautical miles (2,037 km) at 35 knots (65 km/h) was required by the contract, as was a minimum transit range of 4000 nautical miles (7,408 km) at an average speed of 20 knots (37 km/h). Furthermore, she is capable of 24 hour operations at slow speeds (3-10 knots) (6-19 km/h) for experimentation with unmanned autonomous vehicles, and to support dedicated and emerging organic mine warfare missions.

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Spearhead Class Expeditionary Fast Transport Vessels

Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) ships are built by Austal USA as part of the EPF programme initiated by the US Navy.

Military Sealift Command (MSC)

Displacement

Maximum speed.

Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) ships, previously known as Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV), are being built by Austal USA as part of the EPF programme initiated by the US Navy.

Operated by the Military Sealift Command, the EPF vessels support joint or coalition force operations of the army and navy.

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The main roles of the vessels are the transportation of troops, military vehicles, cargo and equipment for a range of global missions. They will also support military logistics and humanitarian relief operations.

Development and construction of the JHSV

The preliminary design contract for the EPF programme was awarded in February 2008. The programme initially called for five EPF vessels to be delivered to the army, as well as five to the Navy and Marine Corps.

In November 2008, the US Navy placed a $185.4m contract for the detailed design and construction of an EPF, with options for up to nine additional ships. The initial critical design review (ICDR) was completed by May 2009.

The first three vessels were named Spearhead T-EPF 1 (ex-JHSV 1), Vigilant (T-EPF 2) and Fortitude (T-EPF 3) in July 2009. Construction of Vigilant and Fortitude was authorised by the US Navy in January 2010.

The keel for the first ship in the class, USNS Spearhead (T-EPF-1), was laid at Austal’s shipyard at Mobile, Alabama, in July 2010. It was launched and christened as USNS Spearhead in September 2011. The ship successfully completed acceptance trials in September 2012 and was formally handed over to the US Navy in December 2012. The US Navy concluded initial operational testing and evaluation of T-EPF 1 in October 2013.

Construction of USNS Choctaw County (T-EPF-2) (ex-Vigilant) began in September 2010. In May 2011, the US Army transferred all five of its EPFs to the Navy. The T-EPF 2 was christened as USNS Choctaw County in September 2012 and launched in October 2012. The keel for the third EPF (now, Millinocket) was laid down in May 2012, and the vessel was launched in June 2013. Deliveries of the second and third EPFs took place in June 2013 and March 2014, respectively. The USNS Millinocket (T-EPF-3) participated in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) Exercise 2014.

The keel-laying of the fourth EPF, Fall River, was held in May 2013, and the ship was launched in January 2014. Acceptance trials were completed in July 2014, and the vessel was delivered to the US Navy in September 2014. The keel for the fifth ship in the class, USNS Trenton (T-EPF 5) (ex-JHSV 5), was laid in March 2014, and the vessel was launched in September 2014. It was delivered to the US Navy in April 2015.

The US Navy exercised contract options for the construction of the sixth and seventh ships in July 2011. Construction of the sixth vessel, named USNS Brunswick (T-EPF 6) (ex-JHSV 6), commenced in January 2014, and the keel was laid in December 2014. The vessel was launched in May 2015 and delivered in January 2016. Construction on the seventh EPF, named Carson City, began in September 2014.

The keel of USNS Carson City (T-EPF-7) was laid in July 2015. The ship was launched in January 2016 and delivered in June of the same year.

The contract options for the construction of eighth and ninth EPFs were exercised in February 2012. The US Navy exercised the $166.9m contract option for the final vessel of the ten-ship programme in December 2012.

The eighth EPF, USNS Yuma, was launched in September 2016 and delivered in April 2017. The keel for USNS Bismarck (T-EPF-9) was laid in January 2017, and the vessel was launched in June 2017.

Austal USA was awarded a $326m contract by the US Navy to construct EPF 11 and EPF 12 in September 2016.

Joint High Speed Vessel design features

The EPF features rounded bilge and bulbous bow hull forms made of aluminium. The catamaran vessel is built to American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) standards. On-board systems comply with the commercial ABS steel vessel regulations.

The ship does not feature combat systems or the ability to support or use LCS mission modules. EPF is based on commercial technology but includes limited military features, such as aviation, C4SI and fire-fighting.

The vessel has a length of 103m, beam of 28.5m and draft of 3.8m. The displacement of the ship is 2,362t.

The open unobstructed mission deck has a usable cargo area of more than 1,800m² with a clear height of 4.7m and turning diameter of 26.2m.

Performance and power of the US Navy ships

EPF can be operated in shallow-draft ports and waterways, interfacing with roll-on / roll-off discharge facilities and on / off-loading. The stern loading ramp can support an M1A2 Abrams main battle tank.

The ships can transport 635t of payload for more than 1,200nm at an average speed of 35k. EPF is manned by the civilian mariners provided by the Military Sealift Command. The vessel has a crew of approximately 42 people.

Aircraft capabilities of Austal USA’s JHSV

The EPF features a Navair level 1 class 2 certified flight deck to support the operations of one helicopter, such as a  CH-53E  Super Stallion.

The ship is equipped with a centreline parking area for one helicopter, vertical replenishment area and helicopter control station.

Kongsberg Maritime was contracted to supply the EPF’s helicopter operations surveillance system (HOSS).

Operated from the control room, the HOSS system allows helicopter operations in very low light conditions.

The system integrates a MIL-S-901D shock qualified 19in SXGA LCD monitor suitable for night vision device (NVD) operations.

JHSV propulsion and crew accommodation

EPF is powered by four MTU 20V8000 M71L diesel engines driving four Wartsila WLD 1400 SR waterjets with four ZF 60000NR2H reduction gears. Each engine rated at 9.1MW provides a maximum speed of 43k without payload. The propulsion system delivers superior fuel efficiency to reduce operating costs.

The ship provides accommodation for 42 crew members in two single staterooms, six double staterooms and seven four-bed staterooms. There is airline-style seating for more than 312 embarked forces, as well as permanent berths for approximately 104 personnel and temporary berths for 46 troops.

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HSV-2 Swift – The Navy’s Proof Of Concept Catamaran

Catamarans have long held a beloved place in Naval tradition. Capable of staying mostly above the water, a catarmaran reduces friction with the water by allowing the water to pass beneath it in channels. When the Navy first came up with the idea of engineering a hybrid naval catamaran, the HSV-2 Swift, they envisioned a military ship able to work on anti-mine operations. Furthermore, the HSV-2 Swift would serve as a useful testing platform for naval technology . In 2008, Australian ship builder Incat produced the first and only modern naval hybrid catamaran. The United States Navy employed the craft for ten years before selling it to the United Arab Emirates for dredging operations.

The acronym “HSV” stands for “High Speed Vessel”. Because a hybrid catamaran would stay above the water, its aluminum hull and light weight made it an ideal platform for helicopters and unmanned aerial and naval vehicles. When it first launched from Norfolk, Virginia in October of 2003, the Navy envisioned a class of warship able to quickly manuever to the front lines and disable mines or launch a wave of UAVs and helicopters into action.

The first of this class of vessel, the HSV-1 Joint Venture, saw action in the invasion of Iraq in 2003. The HSV-1 Joint Venture acted as a forward staging platform for U.S. Special Forces and Navy SEALS in the acquisition of Umm Qasr, Iraq, a key shipping port that needed to be taken intact.

As for the HSV-2 Swift, it managed to break records for the fastest transit from the Northern Great Barrier Reef to Booby Island. The Swift averaged 39 knots across the area. It also served as a recovery ship for aircraft. Furthermore, the Swift worked to great effect in disaster relief from the 2005 tsunami in Northern Sumatra.

Despite a decent record of service, this particular style of hybrid catamaran was sold off by the U.S. Navy in favor of a new Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport. The Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport was a heavier catamaran craft capable of launching more airborne and sea vehicles. The USNS Spearhead (T-EPF-1) launched in 2011 just in time for the HSV-2 Swift to be decommissioned and sold off to the United Arab Emirates in 2013.

The HSV-2 Swift was never meant as a combat ship. Its armament was purely defensive with only four emplacements for manned .50 caliber machine guns. Of a crew of 35, the majority of the focus of the ship’s activities was centered on logistics and recovery of downed aircraft at sea. It could hold up to 107 people with additional berthing available for another 35, making it an ideal place for a temporary command and control center.

Combat Damage off Yemen:

After being acquired by the United Arab Emirates in 2013, ostensibly for non-militarized dredging operations, it was invariably struck by Houthi rebels in Yemen. Undoubtedly, it was acting as a forward naval operating base for Saudi-backed forces in the area and was thus designated a target. On October 1, 2016, multiple news sources reported that the HSV-2 Swift, while under lease to the United Arab Emirates, was struck by a missile. It was located off-shore from the port city of Mokha, Yemen.

The ship sustained heavy damage, including the loss of crew. The type of missile fired is still unknown. According to news sources from the area, the HSV-2 Swift was towed back to friendly waters to be refitted and repaired.

Powerplant:

Caterpillar 3618 marine diesel engines powered the HSV-2 Swift. Each Caterpillar 3618 engine produces up to 9,655 hp (7198.77 kw).

See HSV-2 Swift Specifications

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HSV-2 Swift

Catamaran experimental navy craft, united states | 2003, "the hsv-2 swift is being used by the united states navy to develop their future littoral combat ship doctrine.".

U.S. Navy expands Expeditionary Medical Capability with two EPFs

At sea air space 2021, austal showcased a new expeditionary fast transport (epf) medical ship concept intended to replace the current and aging usns mercy (t-ah-19) and usns comfort (t-ah-20), two ships converted from oil tankers into hospital ships that are about 35 years old. naval news asked the u.s. navy for more information regarding the future replacements for the t-ah hospital ships and what the u.s. navy intends to do for expanded expeditionary shipborne medical coverage..

Peter Ong 05 Sep 2021

Naval News provided video coverage of the Austal USA’s new Medical Expeditionary Ship concept at Sea Air Space 2021.

SEAPOWER magazine reported the news on the U.S. Navy’s Expeditionary Fast Transports (EPFs) having expanded medical capabilities. According to SEAPOWER , the modified EPFs will have “ significant structural changes’ for medical facilities, including an 18-bed intensive care unit, two operating rooms, and feeding and berthing for a medical team of about 100 personnel. Its flight deck would be capable of landing helicopters and V-22 tiltrotor aircraft.”

Naval News reached out to the U.S. Navy’s Chief of Information Department (CHINFO) in August 2021 for more details.  U.S. Navy Lieutenant Lewis Aldridge of CHINFO replied by stating:

“The Navy continues to expand Role 2 afloat medical capability through construction of USNS Cody (EPF 14) and Point Loma (EPF 15).  Role 2 provides limited hospital capability consisting of advanced resuscitation and surgery.  The Navy also continues the sustainment of the two T-AH hospital ships, which offer Role 3 medical capability.  Role 3 provides full, but short-term, hospital capability, consisting of surgery, intensive care, postoperative care, and specialty care.”

The U.S. Navy has confirmed the expanded medical capabilities of EPF 14 here and for EPF 15 here.

Naval News Comments

For purely speculative analysis , to give an idea of the impressive medical capabilities the two USNS (T-AH) Mercy -class ships provide, consider these impressive statistics on the USNS Mercy :

Patient capacity:

• Intensive care wards: 80 beds
• Recovery wards: 20 beds
• Intermediate care wards: 280 beds
• Light care wards: 120 beds
• Limited care wards: 500 beds
• Total patient capacity: 1000 beds
• Operating rooms: 12

Departments and facilities:

• Casualty reception
• Radiological services including CT
• Main laboratory plus satellite lab
• Central sterile processing
• Medical supply/pharmacy
• Physical therapy and burn care
• Intensive care unit
• Dental services
• Optometry/lens lab
• Burn treatment
• Angiography
• Oxygen producing plants (two)”

As Naval News reported previously, information released during Sea Air Space 2021 shows that the current EMS design is a 118 meters-long catamaran with a beam of 30 meters and a draft of 4.5 meters. The Austal’s hospital ship can sail over 2,000 nautical miles at a cruise speed of 18 knots and can reach a top speed of 27 knots. It features a helicopter deck large enough to accommodate one V-22 Osprey, a CH-53 Sea Stallion or a Sikorsky H-60. The ship has a total of 185 berthing including the crew, medical and aviation personnel.

Regarding its medical facilities, the EMS would have 124 medical beds in total including four operating rooms, 8 isolation beds, 32 light care beds and 80 ER, ACW, ICU and recovery beds.

The intended goal of the medical EPFs will be to build enough of them to provide faster and closer expeditionary medical relief in multiple areas of the world compared to relying on just the two T-AH hospital ships, USNS Mercy, stationed on the West Coast, and USNS Comfort, stationed on the East Coast of the United States. 

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Navy Wants To Sideline Its Fast Transport Catamarans As Pacific Fight Looms

Congress wants the Navy to stop reducing the readiness of its Spearhead class transports and to make a plan for them in the Pacific.

FranticGoat

Members of Congress are trying to block the Navy from putting just under half of its fleet of Spearhead class expeditionary fast transports into a state of reduced readiness with only skeleton crews assigned to them. Some of the vessels in question are very young, with one having first entered service just three years ago. This comes as the U.S. military is coming to terms with massive logistical hurdles if it were to go to war in the Pacific, which these fast, low-draft, multi-purpose vessels seem to be ideally suited for.

Because of this glaring disconnect, lawmakers are also pushing for a legal requirement for the service to develop and implement a formal concept of operations for utilizing these catamaran transport vessels in the Pacific.

Provisions relating to the Spearhead class ships are contained in the version of the annual defense policy bill, or National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), for Fiscal Year 2024 that the House of Representatives passed in July . The Fiscal Year 2024 NDAA that the Senate passed last month does not include any such language relating to these vessels, and the two chambers are now in the process of trying to reconcile their bills.

If the language found in the House bill makes it into the final NDAA for Fiscal Year 2024, and is then signed into law by President Joe Biden, the Navy would be prevented from using any funds to place Spearheads on so-called Reduced Operating Status (ROS). The service would also be required to "develop and implement a strategy and concept of operations for the use of expeditionary fast transport vessels in support of operational plans in the area of operations of United States Indo-Pacific Command" within 180 days of the law's passage. The Chief of Naval Operations would have 30 days to "submit to the congressional defense committees a report describing such [a] strategy and concept of operations."

In its budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2024 , the Navy outlined plans to transition five Spearheads – USNS Choctaw County , USNS Trenton , USNS Carson City , USNS Yuma , and USNS Newport – to ROS. The service says doing so would save it just under $17.6 million, which it could then redirect to other priorities. The oldest of these ships, USNS Choctaw County , entered service in 2013. The youngest of them, USNS Newport , was commissioned in 2020.

The Navy has already placed two Spearhead class ships, the USNS Spearhead and USNS Fall River , on ROS. The service has different tiers of ROS, but they all involve truncating a ship's assigned crew and reducing its readiness state. Officially, the Navy categorizes any ship on ROS that is capable of being reactivated within 45 days or less as inactive, but still on the rolls. Spearhead and Fall River are both reportedly being kept on so-called "ROS 45" status, the lowest level of 'inactive' readiness.

So, at least on paper, the Navy currently has 13 Spearhead class ships, also known by the abbreviation EPF. The first of these were commissioned in 2012. The latest of these ships, the USNS Apalachicola , just entered service in February of this year.

Leveraging its experience with commercial high-speed ferry designs, Australian shipbuilder Austal's U.S. subsidiary developed and built the Spearhead class ships , which typically have a crew of around 42 people. These aluminum-hulled vessels displace around 2,362 tons, can cruise at around 35 knots, have a top speed of some 43 knots, and are designed to be readily reconfigurable to the mission at hand. Each one has a multi-purpose 20,000 square-foot mission bay, as well as a rear flight deck able to accommodate various helicopters and a stern ramp for loading and unloading vehicles, personnel, and cargo.

Austal USA is in the process of building two additional Flight II Spearheads for the Navy and the service has a third one on order now. These Spearhead subvariants will have expanded medical capabilities and strengthened flight decks able to allow Osprey tilt-rotors to take off and land. The Navy is also looking to acquire a trio of Bethesda class expeditionary medical ships , a dedicated medical vessel variant derived from the Flight II Spearhead .

With all this in mind, it might seem odd that the Navy is now looking to significantly scale back its use of the Spearheads , which are currently assigned to its Military Sealift Command and are crewed by civilian mariners. However, the service's current plans for ships very much speak to their somewhat obtuse history and long-building uncertainty about their role and mission.

Officially, the current mission of the Spearhead class ships is to "provide high-speed, agile lift capability to deliver operationally ready units to small, austere ports and flexibly support a wide range of missions including humanitarian assistance/disaster relief, theater security cooperation, maritime domain awareness, and noncombatant evacuations," according to the Navy . "They enable the rapid transit and deployment of conventional and special forces, equipment, and supplies in support of maneuver and sustainment operations."

Originally known as Joint High-Speed Vessels (JHSV), the Spearhead class was a product of U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps requirements dating back to the early 2000s. Initially, there was an expectation that some of these ships would be operated by the Army itself as part of its obscure, but actually quite capable watercraft fleet, which you can read more about here .

In the 2000s, the Navy also chartered a number of commercial catamaran ferries to explore the potential utility of vessels like this in various combat and non-combat contexts, largely in support of the JHSV program. In 2012, the service also received two other Austal-designed ferries from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration (MARAD). Both of those ships, referred to as High-Speed Transports (HST), remain in inventory, though one has been on loan to a commercial ferry operator in Canada since 2016.

Over the past two decades or so, the Spearheads and their immediate predecessors have certainly demonstrated the ability to perform a wide array of missions. For instance, two of the earlier chartered catamaran ferries, known during their time in Navy service as the Joint Venture and Swift , were used in particularly novel roles, including as small special operations seabase ships and at sea-based launch platforms for tethered surveillance blimps.

The Spearhead class ships have also been explored as special operations support platforms, as well as floating forward-deployed repair facilities for smaller warships like Littoral Combat Ships (LCS). There has been talk in the past about potentially fitting these ships with more robust weapons. The Navy at one time planned to at least use one of the ships to test its now-defunct electromagnetic railgun . Austal has previously shown concept art of an uncrewed Spearhead derivative with arrays of vertical launch system cells for firing various kinds of missiles, too.

However, the Spearheads have still not seen significant integration into routine day-to-day Navy operations in the past decade and they have generally been used just as transports. The use of the USNS Millinocket recently to bring materiel to Australia in support of the Talisman Sabre 23 exercise reflects how these ships are generally employed at present.

As a prime example of apparent Navy disinterest in more novel applications of these ships, the recently delivered USNS Apalachicola has a full suite of systems to enable crew-optional operations, but the service has no current plans to make use of those capabilities. You can read more about this particular ship and its unique features here .

“I think one step at a time. In terms of that ship, it has the capability but we will integrate into fleet in a very deliberate manner,” Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday told reporters at the WEST 2023 conference in February, according to USNI News . "We won’t have a deployment and unmanned and an unmanned deployment right off the bat."

There are certainly questions about the value of a commercial ferry-derived design in a future high-end conflict, such as one in the Pacific against China. Scenarios like this are dominating planning discussions across the U.S. military at present.

The potential vulnerability of ships like the Spearhead class was highlighted in 2016, one of the catamaran ferries the Navy had previously chartered, the ex- Swift , was destroyed by an anti-ship missile off the coast of Yemen. The vessel was in service with the armed forces of the United Arab Emirates at the time and was supporting operations against Yemen's Houthi rebels. What was left of the ship was subsequently towed to a port in Greece, where the hulk remains.

At the same time, even in the broader context of a larger-scale conflict, Spearhead class ships could still provide valuable intratheater sealift capacity in lower-threat environments or under a protective umbrella provided by other assets. This could also then help free up more robust sealift ships for use elsewhere.

In addition, the ability of the Spearhead class ships to be relatively rapidly reconfigured for different mission sets gives them additional flexibility. This could potentially include providing additional 'magazine depth' for kinetic strikes missions through the installation of modular weapon systems or the positioning of existing mobile launch systems on its stern flight deck, with targeting data fed in from offboard sources.

The video below shows a U.S. Marine Corps M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launcher being fired from the flight deck of a San Antonio class amphibious warfare ship.

Furthermore, the Navy itself has clearly identified the core Spearhead class design as a useful way of augmenting critical expeditionary medical capabilities.

All of this also comes amidst concerns that have been building for years now about the Navy's overall sealift capacity and its ability to surge additional assets , including ones held in various states of reduced readiness, in the event of a major conflict or contingency. Beyond that, the U.S. Marine Corps, as well as the Army , continue to have their specific requirements for lower-tier intratheater sealift support for combat and non-combat missions, particularly in the Pacific .

Just in the past few years, the U.S. Marine Corps has identified an all-new requirement for dozens of additional middle-tier transport vessels specifically to support its new expeditionary and distributed concepts of operation. The Expeditionary Advance Base Operations (EABO) concept centers heavily on the ability of Marine contingents to rapidly deploy to remote or austere locations , including in maritime and littoral environments , and then just as quickly redeploy elsewhere as required to reduce their vulnerability and otherwise make it difficult to opponents to respond effectively.

Spearhead class ships have been used to support counter-narcotics operations and to help shuttle U.S. military units around for various types of training exercises and other regional engagement activities in Latin America. They could provide a similarly useful 'presence' in the Pacific region.

Altogether, it is very hard to see the Spearheads as being anything else but well-suited to meeting a host of needs the U.S. military has when it comes to the Pacific region, both in peacetime and in war. The ships are, on average, relatively young, and have limited crew requirements to begin with, too.

The potential cost savings from putting a significant number of Spearheads on ROS look to be small in the context of the overall U.S. defense budget. As of 2021, the Pentagon pegged the annual operating cost of a single one of these ships at around $20.3 million , which is relatively cheap by naval vessel standards . Beyond that, as already noted, the Navy says it stands to free up less than $20 million in Fiscal Year 2024 by putting five of these ships into a state of reduced readiness.

This all helps explain why the House, in its version of the Fiscal Year 2024 NDAA, wants to compel the Navy to look deeply into the Spearhead class's roles and missions, with a particular eye toward future operations in the Pacific, in addition to preventing the service from placing any more of those ships on ROS. Whether that language makes it into the final reconciled NDAA, and if that bill is then signed into law by President Biden, remains to be seen.

Whatever ultimately happens on the legislative front could have significant ramifications for the future of the Navy's Spearhead class ships.

Contact the author: [email protected]

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Austal’s leadership in naval vessel design and construction is best demonstrated by a number of unique programs currently being delivered, or under development for navies and defence forces around the world.

The Independence-class Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) and the Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV) are two innovative programs that are delivering enhanced mission capability, security, support and efficiency to a diverse range of US Navy and joint military operations, globally.

The innovative, striking trimaran hull design of the 127m Independence-class Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) offers a wide range of benefits over traditional monohulls of the same size; including greatly improved fuel efficiency, increased payload capacity, better stability and increased manoeuvrability. Operating in coastal areas with the ability to carry multiple mission packages, the Independence-class LCS is the world’s most advanced high speed military craft, playing a key role in the US Navy’s surface ship fleet.

Austal’s 103m Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV) , developed for the US Navy, is a fast, flexible and manoeuvrable ship ideal for transporting troops and equipment quickly within any theatre of operations. Featuring a catamaran hull, massive mission/payload area, helicopter deck and roll-on/roll off ramp, the JHSV is able to effectively support a variety of operations, including joint military missions, traditional logistics missions, humanitarian aid programs, disaster relief and maritime law enforcement activities.

Austal’s 72m High Speed Support Vessel (HSSV) , developed for the Royal Navy of Oman, offers the exceptional functionality and capability of the JHSV in a more compact design, with increased military capability.   

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Us navy christens first medical mission transport catamaran.

The US Navy christened its Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport USNS Cody (EPF 14) in a ceremony on Saturday, February 25, in Mobile, Alabama.

While Cody is the 14th ship in its class to be built by Austal, it is also the first Flight II unit, featuring enhanced medical mission capabilities. With an embarked medical unit, the Flight II EPF will have two operating rooms, the ability to support approximately 41 medical patients, and 147 embarked forces.

The enhancements will include a combined forward resuscitative care capability with a limited intensive care unit and medical ward. Flight II EPFs will be able to stabilize postsurgical cases for evacuation without the requirement to first route them through a higher facility.

Other improvements will include habitability modifications, improved small boat handling, as well as the capability to operate the V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft.

Matt Hall, Mayor of Cody, Wyo., delivered the ceremonial principal address. Additional speakers include Vice Adm. Francis Morley, principal military deputy to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition; Rear Adm. Bruce Gillingham, Surgeon General of the Navy; Rear Adm. Michael Wettlaufer, commander, Military Sealift Command; Rusty Murdaugh, president, Austal USA; and Stan Kordana, vice president of Surface Systems, General Dynamics Mission Systems.

In a time-honored Navy tradition, Averil Spencer, the ship’s sponsor, christened the ship by breaking a bottle of sparkling wine across the bow. Spencer is the daughter of the Richard V. Spencer, 76th Secretary of the Navy.

“This ship is the first to honor the city of Cody, Wyoming, a city that proudly embodies America’s independence and fighting spirit,” said Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro. “The future USNS Cody will also be the first Flight II configuration in its class, bringing enhanced medical capabilities in addition to its high-speed sealift mobility and agility. I look forward to the depth that this expeditionary fast transport will add to our fleet.”

The future USNS Cody will join the fleet as one of nearly 100 US Navy ships operating globally each day ensuring freedom of the seas, protecting international law, and strengthening relationships with Allies and partners.

EPFs, formerly designated as Joint High Speed Vessels, are all-aluminum catamarans that provide high-speed, shallow-draft transportation capability to support the intra-theater maneuver of personnel, supplies, and equipment for the Navy, Marine Corps, and Army. EPFs enable the rapid projection, agile maneuver, and sustainment of forces in response to a wide range of military and civilian contingencies such as Non-Combatant Evacuation Operations (NEO), Humanitarian Assistance, and Disaster Relief (HADR).

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• Applications & Design

Austal Delivers Aluminum EPF Catamaran to U.S. Navy

June 9, 2017, 2:53 pm

Austal USA delivered the USNS Yuma , the eigth Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) vessel, to the U.S. Navy. The EPF program provides the Navy with providing high-speed, high-payload transport capability to fleet and combatant commanders.

The 338-foot long Yuma is an aluminum catamaran capable of transporting 600 tons, 1,200 nautical miles at an average speed of 35 knots, and is designed to operate in austere ports and waterways, providing added flexibility to U.S. warfighters worldwide. The ship’s flight deck can also support flight operations for a wide variety of aircraft, including a CH-53 Super Stallion.

Around 700 tonnes of aluminum in the form of plate, extrusions, and forgings is used in the construction of the Yuma . Custom panels created by friction stir welding are joined with custom extrusions using a combination of TIG and gas metal arc welding. Although no surface treatment is used above the waterline, the hull is painted below the waterline. Aluminum provides a strong weight ratio and enables Austal to produce a ship that can efficiently achieve high speeds with a shallow draft. The structure weight of an aluminum ship is approximately half that of a steel ship and is comparable to fiberglass. Other benefits of using aluminum in marine applications is that it is also easy to form, resistant to corrosion, doesn’t require paint to protect the surface, can be welded with well-established commercial processes, and is easy to repair.

“It’s so exciting to see Yu ma join the fleet; an incredible ship built by incredible people”. Austal USA President Craig Perciavalle said. “What’s even more exciting is seeing how our U.S. Navy is taking these great platforms and expanding their mission sets to support a wide variety of operational needs – demonstrating their value and versatility to our forward deployed Naval forces across the globe.”

Upon delivery of USNS Yuma , three additional Spearhead-class EPFs were under construction at Austal’s Mobile, AL, shipyard. The City of Bismarck (EPF 9) was christened in May, representing the ninth of 12 Expeditionary Fast Transport vessels (EPF) that Austal has under contract with the U.S. Navy as part of a contract worth over $1.9 billion. The modules for Burlington (EPF 10) and Puerto Rico (EPF 11) are under construction in Austal’s module manufacturing facility.

In addition to the EPF program, Austal is also under contract to build Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) — high-speed and agile 419-foot aluminum trimaran combat ships — for the U.S. Navy. Five LCS have been delivered while an additional six are in various stages of construction.

Tagged with: aluminum , aluminum plate , Austal USA , marine applications , U.S. Navy

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USS Eisenhower, second-oldest aircraft carrier in Navy fleet, to stay in service into 2030s

The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower transits the Suez Canal in November 2023. (Keith Nowak/U.S. Navy)

The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower will remain in service through the decade’s end, shelving plans that once called for the second-oldest Nimitz-class aircraft carrier to leave the fleet as early as 2027, according to Navy officials.

The Navy announced in April 2022 that it would retire the USS Nimitz in 2025. The oldest of the 10 nuclear-powered carriers of the class, the Nimitz had joined the fleet in 1975, just days after the fall of Saigon ended the Vietnam War.

The Nimitz would be followed two years later by the Eisenhower, which was commissioned in October 1977.

“As the Navy continues to accept Gerald R. Ford-class carriers, we will remain a ready, agile force to compete and win around the world at any time,” the Navy announced in 2022.

Delays in the delivery and production of the Ford-class carriers led to delays in retirement dates for the two Nimitz-class carriers, each pushed back a full year, according to a 2023 Navy announcement. The plan was for the Nimitz to leave service in 2026, and the Eisenhower would retire in 2028.

On Monday, the Navy said the Nimitz would still leave the Navy as planned in 2026. The carrier is now undergoing maintenance at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Wash.

However, the Eisenhower will remain at least through 2029, the Navy said.

The second carrier of the Ford class, the USS John F. Kennedy, would be the first of the projected 10 Ford-class carriers to have a magnet rail system to launch aircraft from its deck. It would take the place of the steam-power catapults now used on carriers.

Development of the launching system and other systems has led to delays, pushing the delivery date of the John F. Kennedy from June 2024 to July 2025.

Though the former USS Enterprise was decommissioned in 2012, it took the Navy until September 2023 to announce a plan to send it to a commercial shipyard to have its eight nuclear reactors defueled and broken down and the radioactive components shipped to safe storage.

Maritime Executive magazine wrote earlier this year that the techniques and timing of the work will impact when a shipyard can start work on a similar dismantling of the Nimitz.

Two additional Ford-class carriers are under construction at the Huntington-Ingalls shipyard in Newport News, Va.: the new USS Enterprise and the USS Doris Miller — named after the Black sailor who received the Navy Cross for heroism at Pearl Harbor in World War II.

The Enterprise is scheduled to be commissioned in 2029. Under earlier plans, its arrival would coincide with the departure of the Eisenhower from the fleet.

But the Navy will now keep the Eisenhower in service, giving the Navy nine Nimitz-class carriers and three Ford-class carriers.

The Doris Miller is slated for commissioning in 2032 and an as-yet-unnamed carrier will be commissioned in 2036.

Mark Cancian, a retired Marine colonel now a senior adviser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., said keeping the Eisenhower beyond the original timeline for its retirement gives the Navy flexibility.

“It would help avoid that gap between when you plan on retiring the Eisenhower and when the Kennedy and other Ford-class carriers are ready to deploy,” he said.

Cancian said building and dismantling 100,000-ton nuclear aircraft carriers was technologically tricky. Tying the delivery of a new class of carriers to when existing carriers can retire is a complex timeline.

“There is tension if you retire carriers on time and there are delays with replacements,” he said. “You could end up with 10 carriers instead of 11 or 12. To be fair to the Navy, the president is always going to call on them to go anywhere in the world.”

If the demand and supply of carriers are inadequate, having enough task forces to deal with multiple conflicts would be tough. The ships require long mid-life nuclear reactor refueling and regular maintenance. The Navy’s fiscal 2025 budget shows the first of the service’s class of supercarriers, the USS Gerald R. Ford, will go to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for a $182.2 million electrical upgrade.

But the United States needed carriers to respond to simultaneous threats of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, protecting shipping in the eastern Mediterranean and Red Sea from the spillover of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, as well as the increasingly assertive military posture of China in the Indo-Pacific region.

The Eisenhower was called on to move out of its home port in Norfolk, Va., on Oct. 14, joining the guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea and guided-missile destroyers USS Gravely and USS Mason to stop Houthi missile attacks on shipping.

The Gerald Ford was stationed in the Eastern Mediterranean, allowing the two carriers to serve as defensive bookends on either side of the Suez Canal, where the Navy said 16% of world commerce flows through on ships.

The Navy plans to build 10 Ford-class carriers to replace the 10 Nimitz-class carriers, which were commissioned between April 1975 and January 2009.

“The [Enterprise] delivery date is September 2029. The [Doris Miller] delivery date is February 2032.” said Lt. j.g. Luke Bienstock, a Navy spokesman at the Pentagon.

Those are long waits in a world in conflict, Cancian said.

“Policy may say, ‘Focus on the Pacific, don’t get distracted in the Middle East or Europe,’ ” he said. “But the world keeps intruding. We can’t say, ‘No, no, we’re not going to support our allies’ when there is trouble.”

Cancian said one way to deal with multiple challenges is to keep carriers around longer than the original 50 years that they were meant to operate.

“As long as commitments remain high,” he said. “You squeeze some more life out of the carriers we have.”

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Iran, Russia and China show off their ships in a joint naval drill in the Gulf of Oman

In this photo provided Tuesday, March 12, 2024, by the Iranian Army, an Iranian military boat patrols as a warship enters the Iranian waters prior to start of a joint naval drill of Iran, Russia and China in the Indian Ocean. Iran has stepped up its military cooperation with Beijing and Moscow in response to regional tensions with the United States, including by supplying military drones to Russia before the European nation invaded Ukraine in 2022. (Iranian Army via AP)

In this photo provided Tuesday, March 12, 2024, by the Iranian Army, warships enter the Iranian waters prior to the start of a joint naval drill of Iran, Russia and China in the Indian Ocean. Iran has stepped up its military cooperation with Beijing and Moscow in response to regional tensions with the United States, including by supplying military drones to Russia before the European nation invaded Ukraine in 2022. (Iranian Army via AP)

In this photo provided Tuesday, March 12, 2024, by the Iranian Army, a catamaran moves in the Iranian waters prior to the start of a joint naval drill of Iran, Russia and China in the Indian Ocean. Iran has stepped up its military cooperation with Beijing and Moscow in response to regional tensions with the United States, including by supplying military drones to Russia before the European nation invaded Ukraine in 2022. (Iranian Army via AP)

In this photo provided Tuesday, March 12, 2024, by the Iranian Army, a military ship moves in the Iranian waters prior to the start of a joint naval drill of Iran, Russia and China in the Indian Ocean. Iran has stepped up its military cooperation with Beijing and Moscow in response to regional tensions with the United States, including by supplying military drones to Russia before the European nation invaded Ukraine in 2022. (Iranian Army via AP)

FILE - In this image made from video provide by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on March 18, 2023, warships are seen during Russia, China and Iran joint naval exercise in the Arabian Sea. Iran will begin a joint naval drill with Russia and China in the northern part of the Indian Ocean, state media reported Tuesday, March 12, 2024. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP, File)

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — China, Iran and Russia have begun a joint naval drill in the Gulf of Oman, a crucial waterway near the mouth of the Persian Gulf, officials said Tuesday.

Footage aired by Chinese state television and a video released by the Russian navy showed the ongoing drill, known as “Marine Security Belt 2024.”

China sent the guided-missile destroyer Urumqi and the guided-missile frigate Linyi to the exercise. Russia’s forces are being led by the Varyag, a Slava-class cruiser.

More than 20 ships, support vessels and combat boats from the three countries, as well as naval helicopters, are involved in the exercise.

A report by Iranian state television quoted the drill’s spokesperson, Adm. Mostafa Tajaddini, as saying the drill will take place in 17,000 square kilometers (6,600 square miles) of water.

Tajaddini added that the three nations’ drill — their fourth since 2019 — was also meant to improve trade, confront “piracy and terrorism, support to humanitarian activities and the exchange of information in the field of rescue,” among other goals.

Iran has stepped up its military cooperation with Beijing and Moscow in response to regional tensions with the United States , including due to supplying military drones to Russia now being used in Moscow’s war on Ukraine.

Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Oman, Pakistan and South Africa are observers of the drill.

The Gulf of Oman has seen a series of attacks since 2019 that the U.S. has blamed on Iran, as well as ship seizures by Tehran, since the collapse of its nuclear deal with world powers. A fifth of all oil traded passes through the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf’s narrow mouth.