Shaheen Announces Portsmouth as the Official Commissioning Site of the Future USS Manchester
**Shaheen serves as official sponsor of ship named after the Queen City**
(Manchester, NH) – Today, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, formally announced that Portsmouth, New Hampshire will be the commissioning site of the future USS Manchester (LCS 14) in early 2018. As the official sponsor of the Littoral Combat Ship, Shaheen is considered a permanent member of the ship’s crew and her initials are welded into a part of the ship’s hull. The announcement was made at Granite State Manufacturing (GSM), which builds critical systems and components for the ship. The last vessel commissioned in Portsmouth was the USS New Hampshire submarine in 2008. Portsmouth is home to the oldest continuously-operating Navy shipyard in the country.
“Today, I am very pleased to announce that the future USS Manchester will be commissioned at Portsmouth, New Hampshire,” said Senator Shaheen. “I can’t imagine a more appropriate location to make this announcement than at Granite State Manufacturing, one of New Hampshire’s premier small-business manufacturers, continuing our state’s long tradition of contributing to our national defense. This is a proud day for New Hampshire, for the cities of Manchester and Portsmouth, and for the entire team here at Granite State Manufacturing.”
"The people of New Hampshire have a long history of supporting our Navy and Marine Corps and we are honored that the city of Portsmouth will serve as the commissioning site for USS Manchester,” said Acting Secretary of the Navy Sean Stackley.
“The crew of PCU Manchester (LCS 14) is eagerly preparing for our ship's commissioning in Portsmouth,” said Commander Emily Bassett, commanding officer of the future USS Manchester. “Our efforts are inspired by our ship's motto, borrowed from our namesake city of Manchester, ‘Work Conquers.’ We've been focusing on conquering challenges with deliberate, hard work by building toughness in our team. We've executed combat team training in the simulator, physical fitness training at the SEAL BUD/S obstacle course, and individual qualification training on San Diego based ships. Soon, we will move as a crew from San Diego, CA to Mobile, AL, and continue to conquer by working the certification and delivery of our proud ship. Thank you to the citizens of Manchester and the state of New Hampshire for giving us a proud legacy to serve.”
The commissioning ceremony marks the acceptance of a ship as a unit of the operating forces of the United States Navy. At the moment of breaking the commissioning pennant, the ship will “come to life” and the crew will ceremonially run aboard ship. At the moment when the commissioning pennant is broken at the masthead, a ship becomes a Navy command in her own right, and takes her place alongside the other active ships of the Fleet. Thereafter the ship is officially referred to as a United States Ship (USS).
Littoral Combat Ships are designed to face asymmetric threats in shallow areas off coastlines and primarily perform: surface warfare, antisubmarine warfare and mine countermeasures. The USS Manchester is part of the Independence class of Littoral Combat Ships.
This is the second ship in the U.S. Navy to be named after Manchester, New Hampshire. The first USS Manchester, a light cruiser that saw action during the Korean War, was commissioned in 1946 and primarily operated in the Pacific. It served three combat tours and earned nine battle stars before it was decommissioned in 1956.
