Textron Systems has received a $230m contract modification from the US Navy to produce two Ship-to-Shore Connector (SSC) craft.
The company will build and deliver the air-cushion vessels at its New Orleans, Louisiana, shipyard, where it will carry out engineering, manufacturing, quality assurance and testing.
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The SSC is being developed as the replacement for the Navy’s Landing Craft, Air Cushion (LCAC) fleet, which is approaching the end of its service life.
The vessels transport personnel and equipment from amphibious ships and mobile landing platforms to shore.
According to the US Navy, the craft support over-the-horizon amphibious operations and are designed to operate across water, shorelines and other terrain.
Compared with the legacy LCAC, the SSC incorporates a larger payload capacity and higher speed, while requiring fewer operators and less logistics support, according to Textron Systems.
The design also aims to extend the interval between overhauls and improve craft availability, the company said.
Textron Systems marine systems senior vice-president Larry D. Randle Jr. said: “The SSCs are a critical enabler for our nation’s amphibious operations, providing unmatched connector capability wherever mission demands arise.
“Textron Systems is proud to continue delivering mission-ready craft, supporting the Navy and Marine Corps with reliable, next-generation craft that strengthen readiness and operational reach.”
The SSC programme forms part of the Navy and Marine Corps’ effort to maintain the ability to move assault personnel and equipment from ships to shore at distances beyond the immediate coastline.
Textron Systems has delivered 18 SSC craft to the Navy to date, with a further 13 in testing or production.
In April, Textron Systems also received a contract from the US Defence Innovation Unit to produce and deliver multiple TSUNAMI uncrewed surface vessels.
Those vessels are intended to support a US Navy Fleet Experimentation exercise in Key West, Florida.
