Design
In 2002, the U.S. Navy initiated a program to develop the first of a fleet of Littoral combat ship, littoral combat ships. The Navy initially ordered two monohull ships from Lockheed Martin, which became known as the ''Freedom''-class littoral combat ships after the first ship of the class, . Odd-numbered U.S. Navy littoral combat ships are built using the ''Freedom''-class monohull design, while even-numbered ships are based on a competing design, the trimaran hull from General Dynamics. The initial order of littoral combat ships involved a total of four ships, including two of the ''Freedom''-class design. ''Wichita'' is the seventh ''Freedom''-class littoral combat ship to be built. ''Wichita'' includes additional stability improvements over the original ''Freedom'' design; the stern transom was lengthened and buoyancy tanks were added to the stern to increase weight service and enhance stability. The ship will also feature automated sensors to allow "conditions-based maintenance" and reduce crew overwork and fatigue issues that ''Freedom'' had on her first deployment.Construction and career
The keel laying ceremony was on 9 February 2015, at Marinette, Wisconsin. Sponsored by Kate Lehrer, wife of Wichita native Jim Lehrer, the ship was christened and launched on 17 September 2016. The naval crest of the ship incorporates elements of the Flag of Wichita, Kansas, Wichita flag, along with a bison skull and feathers representing the Native American heritage and wheat to reflect the state of Kansas's main crop. She is Naval Station Mayport#Littoral Combat Ship Squadron Two, assigned to Littoral Combat Ship Squadron Two. The ship was acquired by the US Navy from Lockheed Martin and the Marinette Marine shipyard on 22 August 2018 along with in a double delivery. On 4 November 2020, Rear admiral (United States), Rear Admiral Don Gabrielson and Brigadier general (United States), Brigadier General Phillip Frietze signed the Joint Force Maritime Component Commander, Joint Force Maritime Component Commander Maritime Campaign Support Plan in a ceremony aboard ''Wichita'' at Naval Station Mayport, Florida. On 25 February 2021, the ship together with Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight, Sea Knights of HSC-22, Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 22, detachment 8, was underway to support operations in US Southern Command area of responsibility. On 9 April, ''Wichita'' and Jamaica Defence Force Coast Guard patrol vessel sailed in formation during a live-fire exercise. During this time, ''Wichita'' was deployed to the US 4th Fleet of operations to support Joint Interagency Task Force South’s mission, which included counter illicit drug trafficking in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific. On 5 May 2022, ''Wichita'' conducted Maritime Interdiction Exercises with the Dominican Navy.Planned decommissioning and possible reprieve
It was announced in 2022 that ''Wichita'' was one of nine ''Freedom''-class ships that the US Navy was intending to decommission during the 2023 fiscal year, but then on 11 August 2023, the Department of Defense decided that ''Wichita'' would undergo a main engine replacement that should save the vessel from early decommissioning.References
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Freedom-class littoral combat ships Lockheed Martin 2016 ships {{US-mil-ship-stub