U.S. Coast Guard’s sixth National Security Cutter Munro (WMSL 755) has completed builder’s sea trials, Huntington Ingalls Industries, the company in charge of the ship’s construction has informed.
Legend-class, as the National Security Cutters are called, are flagships of the Coast Guard’s cutter fleet. Designed to replace the 378‐foot Hamilton-class high-endurance cutters that entered service in the 1960s, they are 418 feet long with a 54-foot beam and displace 4,500 tons with a full load. They have a top speed of 28 knots, a range of 12,000 miles, an endurance of 60 days and a crew of 110.
Built at HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division, Munro spent three days in the Gulf of Mexico testing all of the ship’s systems.
Ingalls’ test and trials team conducted extensive testing of the ships’ propulsion, electrical systems, damage control, anchor handling, small boat operations and combat systems. This culminated in the successful completion of a four-hour, full-power propulsion run.
“The National Security Cutter program exemplifies the sustainable success that can be accomplished through serial production of a ship class,” said Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias .
“We experienced a safe and successful builder’s trial, which is a result of outstanding teamwork from our shipbuilders and our U.S. Coast Guard partners,” said George S. Jones , Ingalls’ vice president of operations. “It is an exciting time in this program, and the NSC class of ships is truly a high-performing design. The pride of workmanship—from those on trial to the many craftsmen and women, designers, procurement specialists and all other shipbuilders who touched the ship during this process—allowed this ship to perform so well at sea.”
Ingalls has delivered the first five NSCs and has three more under construction, including Munro (WMSL 755), set to deliver in the fourth quarter of this year. Kimball (WMSL 756) is scheduled for delivery in 2018, and Midgett (WMSL 757) in 2019.
Munro is named to honor Signalman First Class Douglas A. Munro, the Coast Guard’s sole recipient of the Medal of Honor. He was mortally wounded on Sept. 27, 1942, while evacuating a detachment of Marines on Guadalcanal.
The cutters include an aft launch and recovery area for two rigid hull inflatable boats and a flight deck to accommodate a range of manned and unmanned rotary wing aircraft. The Legend class is the largest and most technologically advanced class of cutter in the Coast Guard, with robust capabilities for maritime homeland security, law enforcement, marine safety, environmental protection and national defense missions.