DULUTH, Minn. — Deputy Undersecretary of the Navy Jodi Greene announced Duluth as the commissioning location for the future USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul in a joint press conference July 18 with Duluth Mayor Emily Larson.
Greene is LCS 21’s sponsor and is in Duluth for Duluth Navy Week, an outreach effort in which Sailors and naval personnel from different commands across the country are in the city meeting with people from all walks of life to talk about the Navy and why it is important.
Greene expressed excitement during at the announcement, underlining the importance of the Navy maintaining ties to cities in America’s heartland.
“We are eager to announce that Duluth has been chosen as the city in which we will hold the commissioning for the USS Minneapolis/Saint Paul,” said Greene. “The city of Duluth is an important port on Lake Superior and your Navy is looking forward to continuing a strong partnership with Mayor Larson and the people of Duluth as well as the people in Minneapolis and St. Paul.”
Larson mirrored Greene’s enthusiasm, highlighting Duluth’s historic connection to the Navy.
“Duluth is a city full of people linked to the Navy,” Larson said. “We have both active servicemembers and veterans who call Duluth their home, and we proudly display the anchor from the decommissioned USS Duluth where everyone can see it. I am grateful to be able to continue honoring our Navy.”
The Navy recently held a christening and launching ceremony for the future USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul in Marinette, Wisconsin, where it is being built.
The ship is being built by an industry team led by Lockheed Martin at Fincantieri Marinette Marine Corp. in Marinette. The future USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul will be about 388 feet in length and have a beam of nearly 58 feet. LCS is a modular, reconfigurable ship designed to meet validated fleet requirements for surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare and mine countermeasures missions in the littoral region. An interchangeable mission package is embarked on each LCS and provides the primary mission systems in one of these warfare areas. Using an open architecture design, modular weapons, sensor systems and a variety of manned and unmanned vehicles to gain, sustain and exploit littoral maritime supremacy, LCS provides U.S. joint forces access to critical theaters.
