Textron Systems said on October 6 that the US Navy had awarded it a $230 million contract modification to build two additional ship-to-shore connector (SSC) landing craft at its shipyard in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The work includes engineering and manufacturing, along with quality checks and testing operations. Textron said both craft will be produced and delivered at its New Orleans facility.
The company said it has delivered 18 SSCs to the navy to date, while 13 more craft are at different points in testing or production.
The navy took delivery of LCAC 116 in June 2026, making it the seventeenth LCAC-100-class craft to be delivered.
The SSC programme is replacing the navy’s legacy landing craft, air cushion (LCAC) fleet. The LCAC-100-class design succeeds older craft that entered operational service in the 1980s.
The design can operate with amphibious ships that already have well decks, allowing the navy to introduce the new connectors without changing to a different shipboard handling arrangement.
Textron says the hovercraft can cross terrain and obstacles and provide access to 80 per cent of the world’s coastline.
The navy lists a payload of 74 short tons (67.1 tonnes) and a speed of more than 35 knots for the SSC. Textron specifies a speed of 35 knots in Sea State 3.
The craft have a four-person operating crew and a cargo deck measuring 67 by 24 feet (20.4 by 7.3 metres).