USS Fort Lauderdale was handed over to the US Navy in March.
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The US Navy’s latest San Antonio class amphibious transport dock was commissioned at her namesake city on 30 July. Despite the city having historic ties to the US Navy dating back to the 1830s and the site being an important naval training centre during World War II, USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28) is the first US warship to be named after the Florida city.
The ship is also the first of the class to have traditional masts in place of the Advanced Enclosed Mast and Sensors. While the former helped to reduce the ship’s radar cross-section and protect sensors from exposure to the elements, they have been replaced as a costsaving measure.
Other San Antonio class ships under construction at Ingalls are Richard M. McCool Jr. (LPD 29) and Harrisburg (LPD 30), which is the first Flight II variant. Fabrication of Pittsburgh (LPD 31), the 15th of a planned batch of 26 ships, is scheduled to begin later this year.