U.S. Department of Defense Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) News Release

Navy Commissions Amphibious Transport Dock Ship Green Bay

            The Navy will christen the newest San Antonio Class Amphibious Transport Docking ship Green Bay at 10 a.m. CDT on Saturday, July 15, 2006, during a ceremony at Northrop Grumman Ship Systems – Avondale Operations, Avondale, La.

            The ship is named Green Bay to honor the nation's Midwest "city by the bay."  The city of about 100,000 residents was founded in 1634 by French explorer, Jean Nicolet, and is the oldest community in Wisconsin.

            Rose Magnus, wife of the assistant commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Robert Magnus, is serving as the ship’s sponsor.  In a time-honored Navy tradition, she will break a bottle of champagne across the ship’s bow to formally christen the ship.  Gen. Magnus will deliver the ceremony’s principal address.

            Green Bay is the fourth ship in the Navy’s new San Antonio Class of Amphibious Transport Dock ships.  As a critical element in future expeditionary strike groups, the ship will support the Marine Corps’ mobility triad, which consists of the high speed landing craft air cushion (LCAC), the expeditionary fighting vehicle (EFV) and the Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft (MV-22).  The ship will provide improved warfighting capabilities including an advanced command-and-control suite, increased lift-capability in vehicle and cargo-carrying capacity and advanced ship-survivability features.

            Cmdr. Burt L. Espe of San Diego, a 1987 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, is the commanding officer of the pre-commissioning unit Green Bay.

            Green Bay is 684 feet in length, has an overall beam of 105 feet, a navigational draft of 23 feet, displaces about 24,900 tons and is capable of embarking a landing force of about 800 Marines.  Four turbo-charged diesel engines power the ship to sustained speeds of 24 knots.

            For more information about this class of ship, please visit the Navy Fact File:  http://www.navy.mil/navydata/fact_display.asp?cid=4200&tid=600&ct=4.

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