When the littoral combat ship Milwaukee begins sea trials sometime within the next two years, the vessel will be powered by a new waterjet propulsion system. Using the waterjets, Milwaukee will be able to exceed speeds of 40 knots. Walpole, Mass.-based Rolls-Royce Naval Marine, the Office of Naval Research, and the Naval Surface Warfare Center at Carderock, Md., developed the waterjet engines jointly. They are capable of moving almost a half-million gallons of seawater per minute. Navy researchers believe waterjet technology is the wave of the future, because vessels will need fewer repairs. Marinette Marine shipyard in Wisconsin, where Milwaukee is being built, took delivery of the vessel’s four waterjets in January. Ultimately, as many as 10 littoral combat ships may use the propulsion systems.
