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USS
Detroit
Commissioned
in its
Namesake
City
Military.com
DETROIT
-
Officials
commissioned
the USS
Detroit
naval
vessel
on
Saturday,
after it
spent
more
than a
week in
its
namesake
city.
The
ceremony
included
speeches
and
appearances
by
military
officers
as well
as
Michigan
Gov.
Rick
Snyder,
Mayor
Mike
Duggan
and U.S.
Sens.
Debbie
Stabenow
and Gary
Peters.
They
were
alongside
the $440
million
Freedom-class
ship,
which
was
docked
on the
Detroit
River in
front of
the GM
Renaissance
Center
since
Oct. 14
and
opened
for
festivities
and
tours.
Barbara
Levin,
wife of
former
Sen.
Carl
Levin
and the
ship's
sponsor,
gave the
ceremonial
order to
"man"
the ship
and
bring it
"to
life."
The
sponsor
also
performs
the
ceremonial
breaking
of the
bottle
on the
bow and
remains
involved
in
special
events
throughout
the
ship's
life.
The USS
Detroit
was
built in
Marinette,
Wisconsin.
Officials
say it's
designed
to work
in
shallow
waters
and
operate
with
speed
and
agility.
It can
be
quickly
modified
to take
on
different
missions.
The idea
for the
Navy
vessel
first
came
about
after
the 9/11
attacks,
when the
U.S.
Navy
held a
design
competition
for an
innovative
kind of
focused-mission
ship.
According
to the
Defense
Department,
this is
the
sixth
U.S.
ship to
be named
in honor
of
Detroit.
The
first
USS
Detroit
was a
British
sloop of
war
captured
by the
U.S.
Navy
during
the War
of 1812,
and the
most
recent
was a
fast
combat
support
ship
serving
from
1969 to
2005.
Ben
Capuco,
chief
naval
architect
with
Gibbs &
Cox
Inc.,
the firm
that
designed
the
ship,
said
previous
Navy
ships
have
carried
the
Detroit
name but
that
none
have
moved
like the
new
vessel.
Critics
believe
the
vessel
might
not be
what the
Navy
needs at
the
moment
due to
the
changing
environment;
there's
concern
for its
"survivability"
in
combat. |
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