The following is the text of a news release from the U.S. Navy:
(DETROIT) — The crew of USS Detroit (LCS 7) brought its ship to life Saturday before a crowd of nearly 6,500 in front of the iconic General Motors building at the Port of Detroit.
The ship was officially placed in commission by Adm. Phil Davidson, commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command, who said, "When a ship is commissioned she is placed in service of the American people and is given the charge to do one thing: to execute the Navy's mission — to be prepared to conduct prompt, sustained combat incident to operations at sea."
U.S. Navy ships are rarely commissioned in the city for which they are named, as such, the state of Michigan was well represented during the event by Gov. Rick Snyder; Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan; and U.S. Sens. Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow.
Stabenow noted the commissioning was taking place "on a pure Michigan day" and thanked USS Detroit's crew for the years of hard work leading up to the culminating event.
Davidson acknowledged the ship's crew and recognized that everybody involved with the ship have a connection to something bigger than themselves.
"Today is about service. The service of this fine ship, those who designed and built her, those who will support her throughout her lifetime and the sailors and officers who will make it realize its full combat capability. It is the totality of this idea of service, that together, we as Americans and your Navy make the United States Navy ready to fight and win," Davidson said.
The ship's sponsor, Barbara Levin, a Detroit native and wife of former U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, gave the order to "man our ship and bring her to life."
USS Detroit (LCS 7) is the sixth United States ship to be named for the city of Detroit. Its predecessors were USS Detroit (1813), USS Detroit (1869), USS Detroit (C-10), USS Detroit (CL-8) and USS Detroit (AOE-4). The captain of LCS 7 is Cmdr. Michael P. Desmond who stated, "USS Detroit is truly blessed to have the opportunity to commission in its namesake city. The ship and the city of Detroit have already established a relationship that will last decades."
The littoral combat ship (LCS) can swap out mission packages adapting as the tactical situation demands. These ships feature advanced networking capability to share tactical information with other Navy aircraft, ships, submarines and joint units.
Detroit's modular design will support interchangeable mission packages, allowing the ship to be reconfigured for antisubmarine warfare, mine warfare or surface warfare missions on an as-needed basis.
The 378-foot Detroit was constructed at Marinette Marine Corp., Marinette, Wis.
