General Dynamics' Littoral Combat Ship Independence Completes Builder's Trials

MOBILE, Ala., Oct. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Independence (LCS 2), the
innovative high-speed trimaran combatant ship being constructed by shipbuilder
Austal USA in Mobile, Ala., as part of the General Dynamics Littoral Combat
Ship Team, successfully completed a series of tests known as builder's trials
on October 18 in the Gulf of Mexico. The trials included more than 50
demonstration events that rigorously test the ship and all of its systems in
preparation for final inspection by the Navy before delivery.

Notable achievements during the trials included reaching a sustained speed of
44 knots during the required four-hour full-power run, with a top speed in
excess of 45 knots.

Photos of the Independence are available at
http://www.gdlcs.com/media-center/lcs-images.

Many of the test events were conducted in high sea-state and wind conditions
(8-foot waves and winds in excess of 25 knots). Despite the weather, the ship
repeatedly reached speeds of over 45 knots with propulsion and ride-control
systems operating in full automatic mode, proving the effectiveness of the
control systems and the highly efficient and stable characteristics of the
trimaran hull form.

A series of high speed ahead and astern maneuvers in these sea state
conditions proved the effectiveness of the ship's four steerable water jets.
During the repeated high-speed turns the ship demonstrated excellent agility
and stability characteristics.

The ship's flight deck remained stable despite sea state conditions and
maneuvers.

The ship's open architecture computing infrastructure (called OPEN CI), a
highly flexible information-technology backbone that integrates the ship's
combat, damage control, engineering control, mission package and other onboard
computing functions, also proved its effectiveness during the trials. The
OPEN CI 'any display, anywhere' capability was extremely valuable in enabling
the LCS 2 crew to electronically reconfigure the bridge area and, at long
range, the Core Mission System successfully detected, engaged and eliminated a
simulated cruise missile attack by a small, fast-moving jet aircraft. In
addition, the LCS 2 crew was able to access detailed performance and operation
data from the bridge while the ship was operating, thereby providing them with
real-time insight as to how the ship systems were performing.

Jeff Geiger, president of team-leader Bath Iron Works, was on-board for the
ship's high-speed trials on October 15. He said, "Independence exceeded our
expectations in terms of maneuverability, stability, handling and speed. We
are very pleased to be one step closer to delivering this highly capable,
versatile and lethal platform to the United States Navy."

In addition, Geiger praised the builder's trials team for a job well done:
"I'm proud of this entire team of professionals, including Navy
representatives from SUPSHIP, Bath and Washington, D.C., who were beside us
every step of the way, for their hard work and perseverance."

Upon returning from the full-power trial, Joe Rella, president and chief
operating officer of Austal USA, remarked: "The LCS did extremely well.
Mobile and Alabama can be justifiably proud of their shipbuilders."

The Littoral Combat Ship is a major part of the Navy's plan to address
asymmetric threats in the 21st century. Intended to operate in coastal areas,
the ships will be fast, highly maneuverable and equipped to support mine
detection/elimination, anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface warfare
mission.

The ship's highly flexible OPEN CI design, developed and integrated by a
General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems team, allows "plug and play"
integration of both the core systems and the LCS mission modules. It meets
Navy open architecture requirements, strictly adheres to published industry
standards and facilitates the integration of commercially available products.

General Dynamics Bath Iron Works is the prime contractor for the General
Dynamics Littoral Combat Ship Team. Partners include shipbuilder Austal USA
(Mobile, AL); General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems (Fairfax, VA); BAE
Systems (Rockville, MD); L3 Communications Marine Systems (Leesburg, VA);
Maritime Applied Physics Corporation (Baltimore, MD); and Northrop Grumman
Electronic Systems (Baltimore, MD).

Bath Iron Works employs approximately 5,700 people. Since 1991, BIW has
manufactured and delivered 31 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers; the shipyard is
also building the lead ship of the Navy's Zumwalt (DDG 1000) class of guided
missile destroyers.

Austal USA's Mobile facility currently employs almost 1,000 workers and is the
largest aluminum shipyard in the world. In addition to the LCS, recent
projects have included construction of the largest-ever aluminum ferry in the
United States. Austal is also in the pre-construction design phase on the
first Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV) for the U.S. Department of Defense.

General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems is a provider of end-to-end
mission solutions in systems integration, development and operations support
to customers in the defense, intelligence, space and homeland security
communities. The company integrates land, air, sea, space and cyber assets to
facilitate the collection, exploitation, analysis and dissemination of
mission-critical intelligence information.

General Dynamics, headquartered in Falls Church, Va., employs approximately
92,000 people worldwide. The company is a market leader in business aviation;
land and expeditionary combat systems, armaments and munitions; shipbuilding
and marine systems; and information systems and technologies. More information
about General Dynamics is available online at www.generaldynamics.com.

www.gdbiw.com

SOURCE General Dynamics Bath Iron Works

Jim DeMartini, General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, +1-207-442-1695, Fax:
+1-207-442-1009, jim.demartini@gdbiw.com