Organisation
General Dynamics NASSCO delivered USNS Hector A. Cafferata Jr. (ESB 8) to the U.S. Navy on Tuesday. The handover completed the Expeditionary Sea Base programme, which the yard said was the last vessel in the class built under the contract.
Austal USA has delivered LCU 1710 to the U.S. Navy, the first LCU 1700-class vessel handed over to the service. The Mobile, Alabama yard said it was also the first steel ship it has delivered to the Navy. Before delivery, the vessel completed acceptance trials and INSURV validated construction quality and mission readiness. Austal USA said the ship also demonstrated it could get underway without tugs or pilots and confirmed its limited crew operating capability.
Austal USA has received three 2025 safety awards from the Shipbuilders Council of America and American Equity Underwriters. The Mobile, Alabama yard said the recognitions bring its total number of safety-related awards to 32. It is among a select group of shipyards nationwide to be recognised by SCA in both safety categories.
General Dynamics NASSCO christened and launched the USNS Thurgood Marshall (T-AO 211) in San Diego on 4 June. The ship is the seventh vessel in the U.S. Navy’s T-AO fleet oiler program and the fourth still under construction at the yard, which has already delivered five ships in the class.
Bollinger Shipyards said it has received the Shipbuilders Council of America’s Excellence in Safety Award for the 21st straight year. The yard said the run, which began in 2005, is unmatched by any other U.S. shipbuilder.
General Dynamics NASSCO has received $856 million in funding to build T-AO 217, a John Lewis-class fleet replenishment oiler for the U.S. Navy. The ship is part of the yard’s current block buy contract for up to eight additional oilers, T-AO 214 through 221.
Austal USA has taken delivery of AML3D’s first portable ARCEMY small edition for the U.S. Navy’s Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence in Danville, Virginia. The system is mounted in a 20-foot shipping container and will join two custom large-scale ARCEMY X systems already at the site. Austal USA said the containerised unit can be redeployed in as little as one to two days, compared with two to three weeks for a fixed system.
Austal USA started construction on LCU 1714, its fifth U.S. Navy Landing Craft Utility 1700-class vessel, at its Mobile, Alabama ship manufacturing facility on April 27, 2026. The yard said the vessel is part of a $91.5 million contract awarded in September 2023 for up to 12 LCUs and associated support efforts.
Austal USA christened the future USNS Solomon Atkinson (T-ATS 12) at its Mobile, Alabama shipyard on 2 May. The vessel is the second of three T-ATS ships under construction at the yard and the second ship in the class launched from the facility.
General Dynamics NASSCO christened USNS Hector A. Cafferata Jr. (ESB 8) in San Diego on 7 March, naming it the sixth and final ship in the U.S. Navy’s Expeditionary Sea Base program. The ceremony included remarks from NASSCO, Navy and Marine Corps representatives, and the ship was broken out by co-sponsors Heather Cafferata and Jessica Cafferata.
Bollinger Shipyards christened the USNS Robert Ballard (T-AGS 67), a Pathfinder-class oceanographic survey ship, at its Mississippi Shipbuilding yard in Pascagoula on 28 February. The vessel will be operated by Military Sealift Command when delivered and is named for oceanographer Robert Ballard.
Bollinger Shipyards has named Commander Mark Matta, USCG (Ret.), as director of programs and Captain Peter Morisseau, USCG (Ret.), as Arctic Security Cutter program manager. The appointments come after the yard was selected to design and build six Arctic Security Cutters for the U.S. Coast Guard with an international team using a Multi-Purpose Icebreaker design.