Navy Awards Ship to Shore Connector Contract As Program Continues to Progress
(Source: US Naval Sea Systems Command; issued April 16, 2020)
The US Navy accepted delivery of the first next-generation landing craft, Ship to Shore Connector Craft 100, on February 6, 2020, a second will shortly begin its user trials, and Textron has now been awarded a contract for the next 15. (Textron photo)
Ship to Shore Connectors are the evolutionary replacement for the existing fleet of Landing Craft, Air Cushion (LCAC) vehicles, and will primarily transport weapon systems, equipment, cargo, and personnel of the assault elements through varied environmental conditions from amphibious ships over to the beach.
"As the program continues to move forward with delivering these important capabilities to the fleet, the procurement of these additional craft is critical," said Tom Rivers, program manager of the Amphibious Warfare Program Office for the Program Executive Office Ships.
Textron Systems was awarded the $386 million fixed price incentive-firm target and firm fixed price contract modification for the construction of 15 craft. Work will be performed primarily in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The contract award is one of several recent milestones for the program. The Navy accepted delivery of the first of the next generation landing craft, Ship to Shore Connector Craft 100, on February 6, 2020. Craft 100 is the developmental unit for the next-generation landing craft and will be located in Panama City, Florida where additional testing and crew training will be conducted.
The second craft, LCAC 101, is making tremendous headway and will head to sea within the next few weeks for Builder's Trials for assessment of its operational readiness. During the trials, LCAC 101 will undergo integrated testing in both unloaded and loaded states to ensure the craft will successfully meet all requirements.
The Detail Design and Construction contract procured nine craft. Beyond Craft 100 and LCAC 101, an additional seven craft are in the later stages of production.
The LCAC 100 Class Craft will address the growing capability and capacity necessary to transport joint forces at the U.S. Marine Corps Marine Expeditionary Brigade, Army Brigade Combat Team, or similarly sized joint force to and across the beach. These craft incorporate improvements over the legacy LCAC to increase range and lift capability while ensuring compatibility with existing well deck equipped amphibious ships, as well as Expeditionary Transfer Dock and Expeditionary Sea Bases.
As one of the Defense Department's largest acquisition organizations, PEO Ships is responsible for executing the development and procurement of all destroyers, amphibious ships, special mission and support ships, boats and craft.
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Pentagon Contract Announcement
(Source: US Department of Defense; issued April 16, 2020)
Work will be performed in New Orleans, Louisiana (80%); Camden, New Jersey (8%); Cincinnati, Ohio (8%); and Gloucester, United Kingdom (4%).
The Ship-to-Shore Connector (SSC) Program is the functional replacement of the existing fleet of LCAC vehicles, which are nearing the end of their service life. It is an air cushion vehicle designed for a 30-year service life.
The SSC mission is to land surface assault elements in support of operational maneuver from the sea at over-the-horizon distances while operating from amphibious ships and mobile landing platforms.
SSC provides increased performance to handle current and future missions, as well as improvements, which will increase craft availability and reduce total ownership cost.
Work is expected to be complete by January 2025. Fiscal 2017 shipbuilding and conversion (SCN) (Navy) funding in the amount of $8,168,067; fiscal 2018 SCN funding in the amount of $236,986,570; fiscal 2019 SCN funding in the amount of $198,693,525; and fiscal 2020 SCN funding in the amount of $50,800,000 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.
The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity.
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