
The ninth Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), the future USS Charleston (LCS-18), finished acceptance trials earlier this month, the Navy said on Wednesday. The Independence-variant ships are built by Austal USA in Mobile Ala., working under prime integrator General Dynamics [GD].The acceptance trials finished on July 19 in the Gulf of Mexico, after a set of demonstrations both in-port and underway for the Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV). These trials are usually the last major milestone before a ship…