The United States Navy has officially commissioned USS Pierre (LCS 38), the final littoral combat ship of the Independence class.
The information was released by the fleet’s press office, marking the conclusion of a 19-ship series built over 15 years as part of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program.
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This is the second U.S. Navy vessel to bear the name USS Pierre. The first was a PC-461-class submarine chaser decommissioned in 1958.
LCS 38 was ordered on December 17, 2018, began construction on June 16, 2023 and was launched on August 5, 2024.
After successfully passing acceptance trials on June 9, 2025, the final transfer documents to the Navy were signed onboard.
Designed by the Australian company Austal, the Independence class was developed as part of the LCS program, aimed at creating high-speed littoral ships with flexible operational capability.
In total, 19 vessels of this type were delivered. The first four ships in the program served as experimental platforms but faced several technical issues and were quickly decommissioned.
The lead ship of the class, USS Independence, commissioned in 2010, was deactivated on July 29, 2021. The second ship, USS Coronado, had an even shorter lifespan, being decommissioned after only eight years in September 2022.
Independence-class ships measure 127.2 meters in length, 30.4 meters in beam, have a draft of 4.5 meters and a full displacement of 3,104 tons. They can reach speeds of up to 44 knots thanks to two General Electric LM2500 gas turbines or two MTU 20V diesel engines.
Their maximum range is 4,300 nautical miles. The core crew consists of 40 sailors, with space for an additional 35 personnel depending on the mission.
The armament includes a 57 mm Mk 110 gun, RGM-184A (NSM) anti-ship missiles, AGM-114L Hellfire missiles in a vertical SUW launcher, and the RIM-116 air-defense system.
In January 2025, USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) became the first of the class to operate with the Mine Countermeasures Module (MCM), scheduled for deployment later this year. However, tests revealed that the module’s components did not fit properly within the class’s internal compartments, leading the U.S. Navy to abandon the original concept of full modularity proposed for the program.
Source and images: Department of War, X @DeptofWar | U.S. Navy, X @USNavy. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
