Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer visited the newly commissioned littoral combat ship, USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS 10) Aug. 29 at Naval Base San Diego.

Spencer visited San Diego to hear to hear what Sailors had to say as he begins charting a course for the future of the Navy.

Spencer toured the ship with Commander, Naval Surface Forces, Vice Adm. Thomas Rowden and then held an all hands call with the crew of the Giffords.

"My three priorities are people, capability and process," said Spencer. "People are the most valuable asset we have. We must provide them with a quality of life that encourages them to stay in the service, as well as a challenging, fulfilling environment. When we challenge our people, they can learn to extract the most capability from our platforms."

Spencer's visit comes days after USS Coronado (LCS 4), another Independence-class LCS, successfully launched an over-the-horizon Harpoon missile near Guam.

"Coronado's successful missile shoot proves the increased need and value for long-range anti-ship missiles," said Spencer.

The Secretary of the Navy was impressed with ship, as well as the Sailors onboard: "The Giffords crew is fired up and ready to take this platform where it needs to go."

Spencer also addressed the recent collisions of USS Fitzgerald and USS McCain during a media availability after the all hands call. He wanted to reassure the public that he and the Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. John Richardson are working together closely to ensure that these types of incidents do not happen in the future.

"The recent collisions are unacceptable," Spencer told media. "The CNO and I are conducting a comprehensive review of how we operate and how we train. We are building a 'challenge team' that will help us develop best practices. Ultimately, we will refine our processes in order to increase readiness and lethality."

Richard Spencer served as a USMC pilot from 1976-1982 and was appointed to office on Aug. 3.

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