Independence-class (LCS-2)

The Independence class is a series of littoral combat ships developed for the United States Navy. The design originated from an Austal project for a high-speed cruise ship, which also produced the commercial trimaran ferry HSC Benchijigua Express. General Dynamics and Austal proposed the design to fulfill Navy requirements for agile, multipurpose warships intended for operations in the littoral zone. Initially part of a competition against the Freedom-class design, the Navy eventually ordered both classes into production. The lead ship, Independence, was laid down in 2006 and entered service in 2010.

The class utilizes an aluminum trimaran hull, a configuration selected to provide stability and internal volume. The vessels feature a modular architecture designed to accept interchangeable mission packages for surface warfare (SUW), mine countermeasures (MCM), and anti-submarine warfare (ASW). The internal mission bay provides 15,200 square feet of area and 11,000 cubic meters of payload volume. This space accommodates cargo, containerized mission modules, or vehicles such as Strykers and Humvees, which are loaded via a side roll-on/roll-off ramp. An internal elevator facilitates the movement of shipping containers and ordnance to the mission bay. Aviation facilities include a hangar and a flight deck capable of supporting manned helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles. The ship's bridge utilizes joystick controls rather than a traditional steering wheel, and external surfaces are angled to reduce the radar profile. Technical revisions during the production run included the addition of bridge wings, the installation of axial flow water jets, and the implementation of improved cathodic protection systems to manage corrosion.

The United States Navy bases the Independence class at Naval Station San Diego. In 2016, the Navy revised the operational structure for the class, moving to a "blue/gold" crewing model and organizing the ships into divisions assigned to single mission sets. This replaced the original concept of frequently swapping mission modules at sea. The first four vessels of the littoral combat ship program served primarily as test platforms. The Navy began decommissioning these early hulls in 2021, citing the high cost of upgrading them to the configuration of later ships in the class. Service history has identified technical challenges, including galvanic corrosion in early vessels and structural hull cracks in several ships. Operational milestones include the 2014 integration of the Naval Strike Missile and the 2017 vertical launch of a Hellfire missile. Nineteen ships were completed in total.