Freedom-class (LCS-1)

The Freedom class consists of littoral combat ships developed for the United States Navy by a consortium led by Lockheed Martin and Marinette Marine. Development began in the early 2000s to fulfill a requirement for small, multipurpose warships capable of operating in littoral zones. The lead vessel was laid down in June 2005 and entered service in November 2008.

The class utilizes a semi-planing steel monohull with an aluminum superstructure. The design features a reconfigurable seaframe intended to support interchangeable mission modules for specialized roles such as anti-submarine, mine countermeasure, or anti-surface warfare. Facilities include a flight deck and hangar for manned helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles, utilizing a Trigon traversing system for aircraft handling. Boat launch and recovery are managed through a stern ramp and a starboard side door. Propulsion consists of gas turbines and diesel engines driving waterjets, with later hulls receiving axial-flow waterjets and rotating AESA radar systems. Automation is integrated throughout the ship to reduce core crew requirements.

Operational history has been marked by technical challenges involving the ships' hardware and systems. Early trials of the lead ship identified numerous discrepancies, and subsequent deployments revealed issues with the electrical systems and corrosion resistance. The class experienced a design defect in the combining gear—the transmission system used to engage high-speed propulsion. This issue resulted in multiple maintenance incidents at sea and a temporary suspension of ship deliveries in 2021 while a hardware upgrade was developed.

In 2016, the Navy designated the first vessels of the program as test ships to evaluate engineering and maintenance issues. By 2020, the Navy announced plans to decommission these early hulls and place them in inactive reserve, citing the cost required to upgrade them to fleet standards and their limited operational utility. Several ships have since been decommissioned and placed in reserve or made available for potential foreign military sale. A modified variant of the design, the Multi-Mission Surface Combatant, was developed for the Royal Saudi Navy to provide permanent weapon systems instead of the modular mission packages used on the United States Navy version.