JHSV completes acceptance trials

MOBILE, Ala. -- USNS Choctaw County, the Navy's second Joint High Speed Vessel, completed acceptance trials earlier this month in the Gulf of Mexico, according to the Naval Sea Systems Command. The Austal USA-built JHSV is an all-aluminum, non-combat catamaran transport ship. Choctaw County is slated for delivery in June and is part of a 10-ship contract valued at $1.6 billion. The first vessel in the order, the USNS Spearhead, also built by Austal, was delivered to the Navy in December 2012. (Sources, Naval Sea Systems Command, 05/16/13, al.com, 05/20/13)