General Dynamics to Showcase Littoral Combat
Ship-Based Multi-Mission Combatant at IDEX

BATH, Maine – General Dynamics will premiere the Multi-Mission Combatant variant of its U.S. Littoral Combat Ship at the 7th International Defense Exhibition & Conference (IDEX) in Abu Dhabi, February 18-22, 2007.

The LCS-based Multi-Mission Combatant is a flexible, shallow-draft, high-speed ship capable of conducting simultaneous missions that are required by today’s global naval forces. The ship features an innovative trimaran hull form that provides outstanding stability, volume and sea keeping; a flight deck that is nearly three times the size of any other surface combatant; and a mission system that is built upon an open-architecture computing environment.

“The General Dynamics LCS-based Multi-Mission Combatant ushers in a new era of high-speed warship design and warfighting capability,” said retired U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Robert Sprigg of Bath Iron Works, who leads the development of the Multi-Mission Combatant warship for General Dynamics. Bath Iron Works, located in Bath, Maine, is the prime contractor for the General Dynamics LCS Team that is currently constructing the U.S. Navy’s first trimaran LCS. General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, of Fairfax, Va., is leading the ship's open-architecture-based Core Mission System design and integration from its Pittsfield, Mass., facility.

According to Sprigg, “The LCS and its variants are specifically designed to enable the maximum capabilities of the latest emerging air, surface and undersea warfare technologies. The flexible and open combat system design of the General Dynamics Multi-Mission Combatant will provide our future customers the ability to seamlessly integrate their desired weapons and sensors faster and more efficiently than ever before.”

Sprigg added, “Never has any ship of this size had the aviation capacity and capability, manned or unmanned, that comes with a 1,000 square-meter flight deck that sits more than 11 meters above the water. This ship will be able to support simultaneous multi-helicopter operations and has a hangar big enough to house two H-60-size helicopters. Internally, the largest reconfigurable, roll-on/roll-off accessible payload bay ever designed into a ship of this size can support the widest range of future critical missions.”

During the IDEX Conference, General Dynamics will present a virtual reality tour of the Littoral Combat Ship, highlighting interior spaces of the ship ranging from the Integrated Command Center to crew quarters. In addition, General Dynamics will display scale models of its U.S. Littoral Combat Ship and Multi-Mission Combatant.

General Dynamics will be exhibiting in booth number 2720 at the IDEX Conference which will be held at the International Expedition Grounds in Abu Dhabi, UAE. For more information about the 7th International Defense Exhibition & Conference visit: www.idexuae.com.

General Dynamics, headquartered in Falls Church, Va., employs approximately 81,000 people worldwide and had 2006 revenues of $24.1 billion. The company is a market leader in mission-critical information systems and technologies; land and expeditionary combat systems, armaments and munitions; shipbuilding and marine systems; and business aviation.  More information about the company is available online at www.generaldynamics.com.

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