Construction starts on USCG’s Munro national security cutter

Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Ingalls Shipbuilding unit has started construction of the sixth national security cutter (NSC), Munro (WMSL 755), for the US Coast Guard (USCG).

The latest keel laying comes after the fourth Legend-class NSC Hamilton left Ingalls Shipbuilding dock for commissioning by the USCG on 6 December.

Ingalls Shipbuilding president Brian Cuccias said: "At this stage of construction, the NSC 6 is more complete and has better cost performance than any previous NSC.

"Working together, the Ingalls and Coast Guard team continues to identify opportunities to improve our performance and provide our customer with the highest-quality ship at the lowest possible cost."

The new Legend class NSC’s are aimed at replacing the USCG’s ageing 378ft Hamilton-class High-Endurance Cutters commissioned during the 1960.

With a displacement capacity of 4,500t when fully loaded, the new 418ft-long and 54ft-wide NSCs are capable of cruising at a speed of 28k while offering a range of 12,000 miles and an endurance of 60 days.

The new vessel, which can accommodate 110 crew members, can integrate an aft launch and recovery space for two rigid hull inflatable boats in addition to a flight deck for a range of manned and unmanned rotary-wing aircraft.

Further, the ship builder claims that NSCs can comply with all the maritime security mission requirements of the High-Endurance Cutter.

Ingalls Shipbuilding has already delivered four NCSs, with construction on three more currently underway and the construction on seventh NSC, Kimball (WMSL 756), is set to start by early next year.

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Image: During the keel-laying of the National Security Cutter Munro. Photo: courtesy of Andrew Young/HII.