WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd August, 2018) Two new Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) Sioux City and Wichita to operate close to shore have been delivered to the US Navy, Lockheed Martin said in a press release on Thursday.
"Lockheed Martin and Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM) delivered the future USS Sioux City, Littoral Combat Ship 11, and future USS Wichita, LCS 13, to the US Navy," the release said.
The defense contractor explained Sioux City will be commissioned on November 17 while Wichita will be commissioned this winter.
"LCS is a growing component in the US Navy surface force, designed to fulfill critical missions around the world now and in the future," Lockheed Martin Vice President of Small Combatants and Ship Systems Joe DePietro said in the release.
The development and construction of the Littoral Combat Ships is famous for cost overruns. In 2016, US Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain criticized the program, saying that $12.4 billion had been wasted for 26 of the ships with no practical combat capability.
