Giffords hits Mobile River

The soon-to-be USS Gabrielle Giffords, named for the former Arizona congresswoman, hit the waters of the Mobile (Ala.) River for the first time Feb. 26 outside Austal USA shipbuilding. Workers were still putting finishing touches, to the formerly-named Littoral Combat Ship, before an August launch and delivery to the Navy. Giffords, who served on the House Armed Services Committee while in Congress, was severely wounded in a shooting in Arizona that left her partially paralyzed. She is the spouse of retired Capt. Mark Kelly, who served in the Navy for 25 years. (Source: New York Daily News 02/26/15)