NEW ORLEANS, LA – USNS SEAY (T-AKR 302), the third of seven BOB HOPE Class Strategic Sealift ships Litton Avondale Industries is building, was delivered to the U. S. Navy yesterday ahead of schedule.

SEAY and her sister ships of the class are designed to support the nation’s ability to deploy military equipment and supplies quickly to U. S. troops around the world and provide prepositioning and surge sealift capacity to contingency areas worldwide. The 950-foot-long, large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off (LMSR) ships of the BOB HOPE Class are among the largest in the Navy fleet, longer than three football fields.

"We are proud of the accomplishments of our shipyard’s men and women in delivering another quality ship to the Navy," said Litton Avondale President Tom Kitchen, "and we look forward to continuing this successful performance with the following four Sealift ships we are building."

Captain David Vogel, United States Navy, Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion and Repair, New Orleans, commented at the delivery ceremony, "I’ve been the Supervisor of Shipbuilding for two years now and USNS SEAY is the first ship I’ve seen through from christening to delivery. I’m very proud of the achievements of both my organization and Litton Avondale with this ship."

The ship is designed and constructed with more than 380,000 square feet of cargo capacity and is capable of carrying up to 1,000 tanks or other wheeled vehicles in its seven cavernous decks. The Sealift ships often carry more than $1 billion worth of cargo.

It has a beam of nearly 106 feet, a draft of 34.5 feet and displaces 62,069 long tons. With 65,160-shaft-horsepower, the ship can cruise at speeds of 24 knots. The Sealift ships have accommodations for 95 people, but they typically sail with a crew of approximately 27. When SEAY departs Avondale, it is expected to be homeported in Baltimore, Maryland.

Litton Avondale Industries, along with Litton Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, is part of Litton Ship Systems (LSS), one of the nation’s leading full service systems companies for the design, engineering, construction, and life cycle support of major surface vessels for the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard and international navies, and for commercial vessels of all types.

Litton Industries is also a leading information technology (IT) contractor to the U.S. government and provides specialized IT services to commercial customers and government customers in local/foreign jurisdictions. Litton provides defense and commercial electronics technology, components, and materials for customers worldwide. Headquartered in Woodland Hills, California, the company has more than 40,000 employees, and, including the acquisition of Avondale, Litton is expected to have more than $5.5 billion in revenue.