US Navy decommissions littoral combat ship Independence

The US Navy formally retired the littoral combat ship USS Independence in a ceremony at Naval Base San Diego on Thursday, July 29.

The lead ship of the Independence-class trimaran-hulled LCS built by Austal USA served for over eleven years and is the sixth US Navy vessel to bear the name. Aside from participation in major naval exercises, the ship was used primarily for crew training and testing of systems to enable the navy to further refine operational concepts in relation to the deployment of the remainder of the LCS fleet.

The navy said Independence‘s decommissioning supports department-wide business process reform initiatives to free up time, resources, and manpower in support of increased lethality of other seagoing assets.