Armed Forces News

The Navy will name the next Freedom-class littoral combat ship the St. Louis, the service announced April 17. Like other vessels in its class, St. Louis will have the capability to incorporate modular mission packages, which would enable it to be transformed quickly to deploy unmanned watercraft. In turn, the unmanned vessels will be capable of countermine, undersea and surface warfare missions. St. Louis will be built in Marinette, Wis., by a Lockheed Martin team.