According to information published by BAE Systems on April 4, 2022, the company has received a $125.5 million contract from the U.S. Navy to drydock and provide maintenance service aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2).
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Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Essex (Picture source: Twitter account of Mark T. Esper)
BAE Systems’ San Diego shipyard will begin working aboard the 844-foot-long USS Essex in June. Under the docking selected restricted availability (DSRA) contract awarded, BAE Systems will perform hull, tank, and mechanical work; repair internal and exterior decks; and refurbish habitability spaces for the ship’s crew and embarked U.S. Marine Corps troops.
Work on the ship is expected to be completed in September 2023. The contract includes options that, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value to $148.2 million.
BAE Systems’ San Diego shipyard is currently completing a 22-month DSRA aboard USS Boxer (LHD 4), which is in the same ship class as Essex.
USS Essex (LHD-2) is a Wasp-class Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) in service with the United States Navy. The amphibious assault ship was built at what is now Huntington Ingalls Industries in Pascagoula, Mississippi. She was launched 23 February 1991 and commissioned on 17 October 1992 while moored at Naval Air Station (NAS) North Island.
Each Wasp-class ship has a displacement of 40,500 long tons (41,150 t) at full load, is 831 feet (253.2 m) long, has a beam of 104 feet (31.8 m), and a draft of 27 feet (8.1 m).
For propulsion, most of the ships are fitted with two steam boilers connected to geared turbines, which deliver 70,000 shaft horsepower (52,000 kW) to the two propeller shafts.
This allows the LHDs to reach speeds of 22 knots (41 km/h; 25 mph), with a range of 9,500 nautical miles (17,600 km; 10,900 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph).
