LCS 8 commissioned

MOBILE, Ala. - A crowd of about 3,000 gathered Sept. 10 on the Mobile (Ala.) River for the commissioning of the newest Littoral Combat Ship, USS Montgomery (LCS 8). The commissioning pennant was let fly; and 35 crew members in their Navy white uniforms jogged onto the ship’s deck. On Sept. 12, USS Montgomery was to leave Mobile Bay heading for its new San Diego homeport via the Panama Canal. Lt. Anamarie Gonzalez, the first officer of the deck, will be the first person charged with putting the 104-foot-wide ship through the 105-foot-wide canal. Austal USA’s shipyard builds all of the Independence variant LCS. (Source: Montgomery Advertiser 09/10/16)