Shipbuilder Austal USA, Mobile, Ala., on Friday announced it has delivered the lead ship in a series of landing craft utility vessels for the U.S. Navy.
LCU 1710 was launched in August 2025 and began sea trials in February.
The 139'x31' vessel is the first in a series of up to 12 landing craft under construction at Austal USA under a Navy contract awarded in 2023. If all options are exercised, the deal would be worth $379.7 million.
Austal USA, which only built aluminum vessels before opening its $100 million steel shipbuilding facility in 2022, said LCU 1710 is the first steel ship it has delivered to the Navy.
Gene Miller, president of Austal USA, said, "This accomplishment reflects the dedication and expertise of our workforce and our industry partners. It also demonstrates Austal USA’s ability to skillfully design, build and deliver highly complex steel vessels."
The 1700-class LCUs will replace the existing LCU 1610-class of amphibious landing craft. The new vessels will transport vehicles, personnel, and cargo between ship and shore with a heavy-lift capacity equivalent to several C-17 aircraft, supporting Navy and Marine Corps expeditionary operations.
The steel-hull vessels feature a roll-on/roll-off monohull configuration with hydraulically controlled bow and stern ramps that allow multiple vessels to connect and form a causeway. The craft are designed to be transported within, and load/unload from, the well decks of amphibious assault ships and can carry loads up to 3.5 meters high above the vehicle deck. With a crew of 13, each vessel has a range of 1,200 nautical miles at 8 knots and a top speed of 11 knots.
Swiftships, Morgan City, La., was initially contracted in 2018 to build at least seven LCUs but reportedly struggled to finalize the design. The Navy terminated the contract in 2024 and does not plan to take delivery of any Swiftships-built LCUs.
The Navy also plans to procure nine additional LCUs from another shipyard beyond the Austal USA contract.
