News and Events

Independence LCS commissioning planned Jan. 16 in Mobile Friday, Nov 06, 2009 By Kaija Wilkinson Mobile Press Register November 06, 2009, 4:59PM The USS Independence Commissioning Committee has announced that the Navy has approved Saturday, Jan. 16, 2010, as the date on which the littoral combat ship Independence will be commissioned, or formally put into service. The event will be marked by festivities such as a boat parade, fireworks, a concert by the Navy band and a military flyover, according to the committee, headed by former Mobile Mayor Mike Dow. "We are extremely excited," Dow said. "This is going to be the biggest party that Mobile has seen in a long time." One of two models the Navy is considering for its next generation of shallow-water warships, Independence was built at Austal USA in Mobile. The last time a Mobile-built warship was commissioned in the city was during World War II, according to retired Navy Capt. Hal Pierce. The Navy announced earlier this year that Mobile had beat out Philadelphia and San Diego, its future homeport, as the site where the ship will be put into service. Fundraising efforts are just getting under way, and the committee has set up a Web site - http://www.ussindependenceship.org . Return to News