By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Patrick Gordon, Defense Media Activity – Navy

PASCAGOULA, Miss. (NNS) — The Navy christened its newest amphibious transport dock ship, USS Arlington (LPD 24), during a ceremony at Northrop Grumman shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Miss., March 26.

The ship is named for the city of Arlington, Va., honoring the 184 victims in the air and on the ground, who lost their lives when American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon Sept. 11, 2001.

“Sailors of the Arlington, you are the spirit that will carry this ship forward,” said Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert. “This is the ship we’ll need for the future. She’s exactly what we called for when we looked out on our cooperative strategy for the 21st century.”

Joyce Rumsfeld, wife of former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, sponsored the ship and brought it to active service by breaking a bottle of champagne across the bow of the ship.

“To those of you responsible for building this ship, you have done something quite remarkable,” said Rumsfeld. “It represents the remembrance of those lost in the Pentagon attack, it represents the clarity of purpose that the attack initiated and it represents so well what we as a nation are able to accomplish if we do work together.”

By its namesake, the ship also honors the military and civilian employees, and the emergency, fire and rescue personnel of Arlington and surrounding communities who provided critical assistance after the attack.

Arlington County Fire Chief James Schwartz, the incident commander who coordinated the rescue response efforts at the Pentagon during the Sept. 11 attack, praised the heroism and dedication that USS Arlington represents.

“Sept. 11 taught us that life is precious,” said Schwartz. “So, too, is the American way of life. Today we christen a Navy vessel whose chief responsibility is to preserve that way of life and to enable us as Americans to pursue our hopes and dreams in freedom. This way of life is only possible because of the sacrifice of men and women in uniform who defend and protect our nation, both here and around the world.”

Arlington was designed with force protection in mind, and serves as a sea-based platform for U.S Marine Corps personnel.

“The expeditionary force in readiness is the vanguard of our nation’s security,” said Maj. Gen. James Kessler, Marine Corps Logistics Command commanding general. “The Navy-Marine Corps team is uniquely suited to these conditions, and this ship is uniquely suited to these missions.”

The Arlington is the U.S Navy’s eighth and latest San Antonio class amphibious transport ship, and the third to bear the name. The ship’s overall length is 684 feet and can reach speeds in excess of 22 knots. Arlington’s armament includes two Bushmaster II 30 mm close in guns; two rolling airframe missile launchers and 10 .50-caliber machine guns.

Arlington has the capability to embark, transport and land amphibious forces through a variety of methods and vehicles including Landing Craft Air Cushion craft and Expeditionary Fighting Vehicles. Arlington will also operate with aircraft such as the tilt-rotor MV-22 Ospreys and CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters.

Tags: News, USS Arlington LPD-24

by SCOTT McCAFFREY, Staff Writer, Sun Gazette
http://www.sungazette.net/articles/2011/03/22/arlington/news/nw82e.txt
A contingent of Arlington leaders will be on hand in Pascagoula, Miss., on March 26 as the U.S Navy hosts a christening ceremony for the future USS Arlington, an amphibious transport dock that will become the third U.S. Navy ship to carry the county’s name.

County Manager Barbara Donnellan, former County Manager Ron Carlee, Fire Chief James Schwartz and representatives of the Arlington County Police Department will attend the ceremony at the request of the Navy and Northrop Grumman, which is building the 24,900-ton, 684-foot ship.

Schwartz will serve as keynote speaker at the ceremony; Joyce Rumsfeld, the wife of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, will serve as the ship’s sponsor.

The ship was launched last November. Christening is another step in the process that will lead to commissioning, set for 2012.

When commissioned next year, the USS Arlington will enter service with crew of 363 officers and men, and will be augmented with up to 800 Marines who can be transported to hot spots around the world with their equipment and aircraft.

No date and location of the commissioning ceremony have been announced.

The christening ceremony “is smaller, but also extremely significant since Arlington is the namesake,” said Brian Stout, the county government’s legislative liaison with the federal government.

Arlington was selected for the ship’s name both to honor those who lost their lives in the 2001 attack on the Pentagon, and to pay homage to first responders on the scene. The county government has established a liaison committee to work with the Navy, and late last year, the Arlington’s future commander, U.S. Navy Cmdr. Darren Nelson, briefed County Board members on the ship’s progress.

Two previous Navy vessels have been named “Arlington”:

* A supply ship that served in the Pacific during World War II and was held as part of the National Defense Reserve Fleet until being scrapped in 1964.

* A communications ship, which under the name USS Saipan had served as a light aircraft carrier during World War II. As the USS Arlington, it served as a communications-relay center during the Vietnam War, and participated in several moon-mission recovery efforts before being scrapped in 1976.

Tags: USS Arlington LPD-24

PASCAGOULA, Miss., Nov. 24, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Northrop Grumman Corporation’s (NYSE:NOC) Shipbuilding sector successfully launched the company’s newest amphibious transport dock ship Arlington (LPD 24) on Tuesday morning, Nov. 23.

A photo accompanying this news release is available at: http://media.globenewswire.com/noc/mediagallery.html?pkgid=8360
LPD 24 is the eighth ship of the USS San Antonio (LPD 17) class of ships being built at the Gulf Coast facilities.
“This is a top-quality warship and our shipbuilding team has done an outstanding job of meeting their commitments to one of the most important milestones in the life of any ship,” said Doug Lounsberry, LPD 17 program manager, Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. “This ship was the most complete LPD to date at time of launch and the schedule was also the shortest time from keel laying to launch. Getting more of the work completed on land is the most efficient way to build these complex ships and our team has accomplished this flawlessly.”
LPD 24 is currently 77 percent complete and includes upgrades from previous LPDs including a new water purification system and a new operating system for the ship’s computing environment.
Named for the county in which the Pentagon is located, Arlington (LPD 24) is one of three ships Northrop Grumman is building to honor the heroes and victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. On that day, 184 people were killed in the Pentagon. The ship’s christening is tentatively scheduled for spring of 2011.
LPD 24 is the third U.S. Navy ship to bear the name Arlington. The 11 ships of the LPD 17 class are a key element of the Navy’s ability to project power ashore. Collectively, these ships functionally replace over 41 ships (LPD 4, LSD 36, LKA 113, and LST 1179 classes of amphibious ships) providing the Navy and Marine Corps with modern, sea-based platforms that are networked, survivable and built to operate with 21st Century platforms, such as the MV-22 Osprey and the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV).
The LPD 17-class ships are 684 feet long, 105 feet wide and displace approximately 25,000 tons. Their principal mission is to deploy the combat and support elements of Marine Expeditionary Units and Brigades. The ship can carry up to 800 troops and have the capability of transporting and debarking air cushion (LCAC) or conventional landing craft and EFVs, augmented by helicopters or vertical take-off and landing aircraft such as the MV-22. These ships will support amphibious assault, special operations or expeditionary warfare missions through the first half of the 21st Century.
Northrop Grumman Corporation is a leading global security company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions in aerospace, electronics, information systems, shipbuilding and technical services to government and commercial customers worldwide. Please visit www.northropgrumman.com for more information.
CONTACT: Bill Glenn
Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding
(228) 935-3972
William.Glenn@ngc.com

Tags: News, USS Arlington LPD-24