Austal USA, Mobile, Ala., hosted future USS Santa Barbara ship sponsor and keel authenticator, Lolita Zinke, recently at a keel laying ceremony for the 16th Independence variant Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). Zinke welded her initials into the ship’s keel plate officially authenticating that the keel of the future USS Santa Barbara (LCS 32) “has been truly and fairly laid”.
The 421’6″x103.7′ Independence-variant LCS is the most recent step in the small surface combatant evolution. A high-speed,...
https://www.workboat.com/news/shipbuilding/austal-usa-holds-keel-laying-ceremony-for-lcs-32/