PASCAGOULA, Miss., May 03, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (NYSE:HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division launched the amphibious assault ship Tripoli (LHA 7) from its floating dry dock on Monday. The launch was accomplished 13 weeks ahead of the original construction schedule.

“Ingalls has been the Navy’s large-deck amphib builder since the early 1970s,” said Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias. “Our vast knowledge and experience in the design and construction of these great ships is paying dividends—not only for the American taxpayer, but also for the Navy-Marine Corps team and the sailors and Marines who will be operating these important warships in defense of our country.”

A video and photo accompanying this release are available at: http://newsroom.huntingtoningalls.com/releases/amphibious-assault-ship-tripoli-lha7-launched.

Tripoli, the second of the America-class amphibious assault ships, was translated to the company’s floating dry dock on April 8 and, after some prep work on the ship’s hull, was launched on Monday. The next ship in the class, Bougainville (LHA 8), is scheduled to start construction in late 2018.

Ingalls is currently the sole builder of large-deck amphibious ships for the Navy. The shipyard delivered its first amphibious assault ship, the Iwo Jima-class USS Tripoli (LPH 10), in 1966. Ingalls has since built five Tarawa-class (LHA 1) ships, eight Wasp-class (LHD 1) ships and the first in a new class of ships, America (LHA 6).

Huntington Ingalls Industries is America’s largest military shipbuilding company and a provider of professional services to partners in government and industry. For more than a century, HII’s Newport News and Ingalls shipbuilding divisions in Virginia and Mississippi have built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. HII’s Technical Solutions division provides a wide range of professional services through its Fleet Support, Integrated Missions Solutions, Nuclear & Environmental, and Oil & Gas groups. Headquartered in Newport News, Virginia, HII employs nearly 37,000 people operating both domestically and internationally. For more information, visit:

• HII on the web: www.huntingtoningalls.com
• HII on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HuntingtonIngallsIndustries
• HII on Twitter: twitter.com/hiindustries

Contact:

Bill Glenn
william.glenn@hii-co.com
228-935-1323