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Washington | Australian shipbuilder Austal could be barred from bidding on future US government contracts after current and former executives at the company’s American arm were charged with misleading shareholders and investors. Austal, which is 19 per cent owned by Australia’s richest man, Andrew Forrest, builds ships for the US Navy and is working on parts of the nuclear-powered Virginia class submarines that Australia will purchase under the AUKUS agreement.

MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — When Austal USA was not selected in April 2020 by the Pentagon to build a frigate for the U.S. Navy, many worried about the future of Mobile’s largest industrial employer. Craig Hooper, Senior Contributor at Forbes called the moment an “existential catastrophe” for the Mobile shipyard.

At the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space 2017 exposition currently held near Washington D.C., Austal USA rolled out an updated LCS Frigate design called the "Austal Frigate". The main modifications consist in a slightly shortened flight deck in order to fit anti-ship missile launchers and a variable depth sonar in order to add capabilities to the ship's aft. The new Austal Frigate features a redesigned stern to add capabilities to the ship's aft. According to Austal USA, the Austal Frigate possesses increased lethality and high-speed shallow draft multi-mission combatant capabilities on a seaframe nearly identical to the Independence-class Littoral Combat Ship. This...

MOBILE, Alabama -- It's judgment day for the littoral combat ship. The July 31 deadline has passed for a task force of U.S. Navy officials to collect information for a new or improved small surface combatant. In a released statement the Navy said it will begin reviewing the preliminary findings that will decide the future of the littoral combat ship, or whether to replace it. "Because the task force alternatives will be considered as part of (the fiscal year 2016 budget) deliberations, the Navy will not comment publicly on the report's findings until budget decisions within the defense department are...

Smaller Navy Ship Has a Rocky Past and Key Support MOBILE, Ala. — The Navy’s newest ship is designed to battle Iranian attack boats, clear mines from the Strait of Hormuz, chase down Somali pirates and keep watch on China’s warships. The ones built here even look menacing, like Darth Vader on the sea. “It’s going to scare the hell out of folks,” said Representative Jo Bonner, the Alabama Republican who represents Mobile and is one of the ship’s biggest boosters in Congress. Mr. Bonner acknowledged that the ship had needed a “tweak” here and there — his allusion to...

The U.S. Navy has discovered "aggressive" corrosion in Austal Ltd.'s first new combat ship designed for operating close to shore. The corrosion is in the propulsion areas of the USS Independence, the Littoral Combat Ship built by the Mobile, Alabama-based subsidiary of Australia's Austal and General Dynamics Corp. "This could be a very serious setback," said Norman Polmar, an independent naval analyst and author in Alexandria, Virginia. "If the ship develops a serious flaw, you're not going to continue producing them." Permanent repair will require drydocking the ship and removing its "water jets,". Aluminum-hulled ships such as Austal's tend to...

Austal eyes Saudi market for more LCS sales Published: Tuesday, April 12, 2011 By Dan Murtaugh, Press-Register Press-Register MOBILE, Ala. -- Austal USA is eyeing Saudi Arabia as a potential buyer for its littoral combat ship, company officials said. Reuters news service reported last week that the Saudi government has asked the United States for prices on surface warships that integrate air and missile defenses. The Saudis also inquired about helicopters, patrol craft and shore infrastructure. Executives with Lockheed Martin Corp., which along with Austal builds LCS for the U.S. Navy, told Reuters that the first wave of the Saudi...

Austal sees smaller LCS for RAN AAP March 25, 2011, 11:11 am Shipbuilder Austal is proposing a smaller version of its revolutionary US Navy Littoral Combat Ship as the Australian navy's next generation warship. Austal chief executive Andrew Bellamy, in Canberra for meetings with defence officials, said the company was now constructing 10 LCSs for the US under a $US3.7 billion ($A3.63 billion) contract announced last year. Under the 2009 Defence White Paper, Australia's existing navy patrol boats, minehunters and hydrographic vessels will be replaced by 20 multi-role vessels (MRVs) with the first scheduled to enter service around 2019. "Our...

Joint High Speed Vessel: Great Potential, But Questions Remain March 2011 By Grace V. Jean The Defense Department this decade will build a fleet of new high-speed aluminum ships specifically designed to shuttle hundreds of troops and tons of cargo around a theater of operations. These shallow-draft logistics ships, analysts say, will become valuable vehicles for executing “soft power” missions — responding to natural disasters, providing humanitarian assistance, conducting port visits and training partner military forces, among others. The Defense Department currently accomplishes this role using traditional warships such as the Navy’s “big deck” amphibious vessels. Analysts say the joint...

U.S. Navy Awards Over $900 Million as a First Step Toward Acquisition of 20 Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) December 29, 2010 tamir_eshel Lockheed Martin received funding for one additional Freedom class LCS and advanced payment for long lead materials for 10 vessels. Photo: US Navy The U.S. Navy has awarded two fixed-price incentive contracts worth over US$460 million each to Lockheed Martin Corp. and Austal USA, for the design and construction of a total of 20 littoral combat ships split equally between the two companies in the next five years. The new contracts give each shipbuilding team one ship to...

WA company to build US navy warships By David Weber Updated Thu Dec 23, 2010 United States president Barack Obama has signed off on a deal for a West Australian company to build 10 warships for the US navy. Austal will construct the warships at its yard in Alabama in a contract worth more than $4 billion. The Perth-based company has designed a 127-metre multi-purpose vessel called the Littoral Combat ship. Austal chief operating officer Andrew Bellamy says the aluminium trimaran has been developed for action close to shore where larger ships cannot operate effectively. "Effectively it was invented in...