ANCHORAGE, Alaska—
The USS Anchorage, a new Navy ship currently undergoing sea trials, is under consideration for commissioning in Anchorage, according to a letter from Navy Secretary Ray Mabus’s office to Sen. Lisa Murkowski.The state’s congressional delegation has expressed interest in the idea, and Murkowski wrote Mabus in November to request that the San Antonio-class amphibious dock ship be commissioned at the Port of Anchorage following its trials.
The brief response from the secretary's office raises one objection, noting that “further research is required to ensure that the ship’s production schedule can support the execution of a commissioning in advance of adverse seasonal weather conditions.” It goes on to state that “the Secretary will give every consideration to having LPD 23 commissioned in Anchorage.”
“The Port of Anchorage would be an ideal location to commission the USS Anchorage,” Murkowski said in a statement Friday. “I am encouraged that (the) Secretary of the Navy agrees, and is going to give an Alaskan ceremony serious consideration.”
The Anchorage is the second Navy ship to be named after the city. It is designed to transport troops for amphibious operations, deploying them either by helicopters launched off its flight deck or landing craft launched from a well deck that opens to the sea.
