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Europeans supply propulsion for US Navy

31 Dec 2011

Lockheed Martin’s proposal for the Littoral Combat Ship is powered by Rolls-Royce gas turbines and Kamewa waterjets, with Pielstick-designed diesels completing the CODAG plant (Picture: Lockheed Martin, prime contractor)

Rolls-Royce and Converteam have recently secured multi-ship high-power propulsion contracts with Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics NASSCO, writes Henrik Segercrantz.

Rolls-Royce will supply MT30 gas turbines to the US Navy Littoral Combat Ship programme. Two MT30s, operating at up to 72MW of power and driving four Rolls-Royce Kamewa waterjets, enable the monohull 115.2m Littoral Combat Ship displacing approximately 3,000 tons to reach speeds in excess of 47 knots.

At 36MW, the MT30 is the most powerful marine gas turbine on the market, according to Rolls-Royce. The contracts for the remaining eight ships in the 10-vessel programme will be awarded through to 2015. The Fort Worth, the third vessel, LCS 3, was launched last December. The USS Freedom, LCS 1, was delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2008 and completed her maiden deployment in 2010. Two Rolls-Royce MT30 marine gas turbines and two Fairbanks Morse Colt-Pielstick 16PA6B STC diesels drive four Kamewa 153SII waterjets, in a combined diesel and gas turbine (CODAG) arrangement.

Earlier, Rolls-Royce received a contract to supply its MT30 for the DDG 1000 destroyer.

Meanwhile, power conversion specialist Converteam recently received an order from General Dynamics NASSCO for an integrated power system (IPS), including design and supply of the complete electric power, propulsion and vessel automation system, for the Mobile Landing Platform (MLP) programme. Converteam is already involved with the US Navy's IPS fleet, which includes DDG 1000, T-AKE, LHD 8 and LHA 6.

The MLP vessels are a new class and type of auxiliary support ship intended to serve as a transfer station or floating pier at sea, improving the US military's ability to deliver equipment and cargo from ship-to-shore when friendly bases are denied, or simply do not exist. That can be very useful in disaster situations, and equally useful for supporting US. Marines once they are ashore. The IPS includes a tandem propulsion motor powered by variable frequency drives, as well as the harmonic filters, generators, high voltage switchboards, transformers, automation, azimuthing thruster with dynamic positioning capability, and associated thruster drive and motor.

Converteam will offer through-life service and support of the vessels anywhere in the world. The performance of the contract and engineering design will be performed in Pittsburgh. The vessels will be built and commissioned at the General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard in San Diego.

There are three scheduled class vessels expected to be delivered between May 2013 and December 2014.

In July, the live tests of the IPS for the DDG 1000 destroyer class took place. DDG 1000 will be the first US Navy surface combatant to use electric power for propulsion and ship services. The IPS generates the total ship electric power requirements, and distributes and converts it for all onboard consumers, including propulsion, combat systems and ship services. The first successful test of the IPS occurred in May 2011. The IPS allows for automatic reconfiguration following damage to the power distribution system. The next test, scheduled for early 2012, will integrate and test portions of the DDG 1000 engineering control system software with the IPS.

The lead ship of the DDG 1000 class destroyers, USS Zumwalt, is more than 50% complete and scheduled to deliver in fiscal year 2014, with an initial operating capability in fiscal year 2016. The second ship, USS Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001), is around 20% complete.

As one of the Defense Department's largest acquisition organisations, PEO Ships, an affiliated PEO of NAVSEA, is responsible for executing the development and procurement of all destroyers, amphibious ships, special mission and support ships, special warfare craft, and foreign military sales.