Did You Know...

There’s no denying that the new Independence-class Littoral Combat Ships are menacing-looking pieces of equipment. Instapinch has some great photos of our newest one, the USS Independence. More are in the works.

What do they do? Oh, nearly 50 knots, I hear. Plus some other nifty stuff:

The Littoral Combat Ship is a key element of the Navy’s plan to address asymmetric threats. Intended to operate in coastal areas of the globe, the ship will be fast, highly maneuverable and geared to supporting mine detection/elimination, anti-submarine warfare and surface warfare, particularly against small surface craft.

Looks like the clandestine submarine industry I talked about here just got a little more exciting. Also taking note: the Iranian navy, with their Pasdaran speedboats that hassle our sailors in the Persian gulf, and the Somali pirates.

UPDATE: Corrected the post title, per commenter fanningp, who points out that “commissioning” (as I originally wrote) and “launching” are not the same thing.

He’s right. Great little historical essay here explains the difference.

Not only that, “launching” sounds cooler in the Star Wars context.

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{Post by See-Dubya; h/t to OpFor.}