PASCAGOULA, Miss. - Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding delivered to the Navy the amphibious-assault ship Makin Island (LHD 8) during a short ceremony Thursday on the flight deck. Makin Island is the eighth USS Wasp-class amphibious assault ship built in Pascagoula. It’s 844 feet long, 106 feet wide and has a speed in excess of 20 knots. It has the first gas turbine/electric-powered propulsion system ever used on large deck amphibious assault ships. (Source: Northrop Grumman, 04/16/09)
