The United States Navy has officially received its 19th and final Independence-class Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), designated LCS 38 and named the future USS Pierre. Built by Austal USA, the vessel marks the completion of the 15-year Independence-class program. The ship was launched in August 2024 and successfully passed its acceptance trials in June 2025, during which all core systems and performance metrics were evaluated.
The USS Pierre is scheduled to be commissioned in the fall and will be stationed at its homeport in San Diego, California. The Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program consists of two design variants: the Freedom-class, developed by Lockheed Martin, and the Independence-class, constructed by Austal USA. Both variants are designed as agile surface combatants capable of operating in near-shore environments.
Equipped for missions such as mine countermeasures, surface warfare, and maritime security, these ships can function independently or alongside larger naval vessels like cruisers and destroyers. However, the program has faced ongoing challenges, including rising costs, mechanical failures, and complications in swapping modular mission packages. These issues led to the early decommissioning of several ships, including both Freedom- and Independence-class vessels, many of which served less than a decade.
