USS New Orleans (LPD-18)

For other ships of the same name, see USS New Orleans.

USS New Orleans arriving in San Diego Bay, May 3, 2007
Career
Class and type:	San Antonio class amphibious transport dock
Namesake:	The City of New Orleans, Louisiana
Ordered:	18 December 1998
Builder:	Northrop Grumman Ship Systems
Laid down:	14 October 2002
Launched:	11 December 2004
Christened:	20 November 2004
Commissioned:	10 March 2007
Homeport:	Naval Base San Diego
Motto:	Victory From the Sea
Status:	in active service, as of 2024
Badge:
General characteristics
Displacement:	24,433 tons full
Length:	208.4 m (684 ft) overall, 201.4 m (661 ft) waterline
Beam:	32 m (105 ft) extreme, 29.5 m (97 ft) waterline
Draft:	7 m (23 ft)
Propulsion:	Four Colt-Pielstick diesel engines, two shafts, 40,000 hp (30 MW)
Boats and landing craft carried:	Two LCACs (air cushion) or one Landing Craft Utility (conventional); 14 Expeditionary Fighting Vehicles
Armament:	2 × 30 mm Bushmaster II guns for surface threat defense; 2 × RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile launchers for air defense & missile defense

USS New Orleans (LPD-18), a San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock, is the fourth commissioned ship of the United States Navy to be named for the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. She is designed to be able to deliver a fully-equipped battalion of 700 Marines.

Construction and commissioning

New Orleans is the second vessel in the LPD-17 class of high-tech amphibious assault ships, which ferry Marines and their equipment to and from war zones. The contract to build her was awarded on 18 December 1998 to Northrop Grumman Ship Systems of New Orleans, Louisiana, and her keel was laid down on 14 October 2002. She was christened on 20 November 2004, sponsored by Carolyn Shelton, the wife of General Henry H. Shelton, former Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff. The warship was actually launched three weeks later, on 11 December. She completed her Builder's Trials on 26 October 2006.

New Orleans was commissioned on 10 March 2007 in New Orleans, Louisiana, two years behind schedule and 90 percent over budget. After commissioning, she steamed to San Diego, California via the Panama Canal to join the US Pacific Fleet. She arrived at her new homeport of Naval Base San Diego on 3 May 2007 and was assigned to Amphibious Squadron Five.

Fielding and issues

After arriving in San Diego, New Orleans required 400,000 more man-hours of construction to bring it to fully operational status. Commander Scott Davies took command of the ship in June 2008. In August 2008, the ship failed its INSURV inspection. The INSURV inspectors documented 2,600 deficiencies, including problems with the steering system, broken ventilation fans, inoperable elevators, corrosion on the flight deck, and an unreliable propulsion system. "USS New Orleans was degraded in her ability to conduct sustained combat operations," the INSURV report said. "The ship cannot support embarked troops, cargo or landing craft." US Navy officials reported that 85% of the deficiencies were minor issues and that most of the deficiencies had already been corrected.

On January 9, 2009, the New Orleans departed San Diego on its initial deployment, as part of a five-ship amphibious strike group that also included USS Boxer and USS Comstock. The Boxer strike group and the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit included more than 4,000 sailors and Marines.

Collision with the USS Hartford

Main article: USS Hartford and USS New Orleans collision

On 20 March 2009 New Orleans was involved in a collision with the submarine USS Hartford (SSN-768) in the Strait of Hormuz. Fifteen sailors on the Hartford suffered minor injuries and the fuel tank on the New Orleans was ruptured causing an oil spill of 25,000 gallons of diesel marine fuel. After the incident both vessels were able to continue under their own power.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

[[Commons: Category:USS New Orleans (LPD 18)

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• New Orleans Official Command Website
• USS New Orleans in the Naval Vessel Register
• "US navy vessels collide in Gulf" (News Report). BBC News. March 20, 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7955185.stm. Retrieved 2009-03-20.