Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced today that the next Independence-variant littoral combat ship (LCS) will be named USS Tulsa (LCS 16).

The selection of the name honors Oklahoma's second largest city. Tulsa will be the second, commissioned ship to bear the name. The first, a patrol gunboat commissioned in 1923, conducted training exercises in Central America and sent its Marines and Sailors ashore to protect life and property during civil unrest in Nicaragua during the 1920s. The first Tulsa also operated during World War II and received two battle stars for its work patrolling shores in China and the Philippines and for serving as an escort to supply ships in Australia. During this time, Tulsa was part of the rescue operation of the British merchant ship City of Manchester.

A fast, agile surface combatant, the LCS provides the required warfighting capabilities and operational flexibility to execute a variety of missions in areas such as mine warfare, anti-submarine warfare and surface warfare.

The ship will be built with modular design incorporating mission packages that can be changed out quickly as combat needs change in a region. These mission packages are supported by detachments that deploy both manned and unmanned vehicles, and sensors, in support of mine, undersea, and surface warfare missions.

Tulsa will be built by Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama. It will be 419 feet long and be capable of operating at speeds in excess of 40 knots.

Additional information about littoral combat ships is available online at:
http://www.navy.mil/local/LCSIndependence/ .