PASCAGOULA, Miss. --- On August 19, construction started on the Mesa Verde (LPD 19) in Pascagoula, Miss.
Mesa Verde is the third ship in a new class of amphibious ships that will support landing forces and embarked troops in forward presence operations throughout the world.
Work originally started at General Dynamics' Bath Iron Works last year, but an agreement reached in June 2002 between the General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman Ship Systems (NGSS) and the Navy reallocated shipbuilding responsibilities for LPD 19 and three sister ships to NGSS. Northrop Grumman will build the other eight ships of the class in Avondale, LA where the first ship of the LPD 17 class, San Antonio is halfway complete and a keel laying for LPD 18, the New Orleans, is scheduled for October 2002 in Avondale, Louisiana.
Mesa Verde will be a revolutionary expeditionary warship. Designed to fully support Marine Corps' missions in amphibious warfare and in special operations, the new ship has a flight deck for aircraft and a well deck for landing craft or tracked amphibians. Each ship can carry 699 to 800 Marines, land them by Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicles, or fly them to their objective from a variety of helicopters or vertical take off and landing aircraft.
At 684 feet long, 105 feet wide, and displacing nearly 25,000 tons, these ships will are the second largest ships in the Navy's 21st Century Amphibious Ready Groups. Designed for survivability, Mesa Verde's distinct profile is less vulnerable to detection, particularly with its Advanced Enclosed Mast/Sensor replacing traditional stick" masts.
The ship also has two surface-to-air Rolling Airframe Missile Launchers for air defense and two high rate of fire stabilized 30mm guns for close in protection against small boats. The ship will also be shock hardened and equipped with the latest in firefighting and damage control equipment.
The designers have not overlooked quality of life for Sailors and Marines, male and female, aboard Mesa Verde. Living spaces have adjacent sanitary facilities, nearby lounges and troop armories for the Marines. New bunks, the sit-up berths, improve the old style "bunk beds" by allowing the occupant to sit up and use a portable reading and writing surface.
Computer systems will optimize manning and ensure the best combat readiness. Automated workstations will help the Pilot House team navigate the ship and help the engineers control the diesel power plant. The Ship Wide Area Network (SWAN) connects the various ship systems while also providing Internet and e-mail services. The SWAN also serves as the access to training opportunities, from professional Navy courses to college classes through teleconferencing means. The 21st Century Sailor in Mesa Verde will use computers every day.
This will not be the first amphibious ship built in Pascagoula. While the French started building ships there as early as 1718, the current shipyard began building amphibious ships in the 1950s. It has constructed Land Ship Tanks (LSTs), and amphibious assault ships, the Tarawa and Wasp classes, as well as submarines, destroyers, guided missile destroyers, and cruisers. Northrop Grumman Ship Systems is scheduled to complete Mesa Verde in 2006.
The ship is named in recognition of the Mesa Verde National Park in Southwestern Colorado. As stated by Secretary of the Navy Richard Danzig in the October 2000 ship announcement, ""Mesa Verde is a jewel of our National Park system that celebrates the extraordinary beauty and diversity of that region and our nation. ""The real richness of Mesa Verde and that of our country's naval service, however, lies in the people -- the remarkable legacy of their past and a future with great promise. The naming of Mesa Verde establishes a strong and fundamental link between this nation and those who serve and truly value that bond.""
For the Navy and the nation, that bond has started growing in Mississippi.
