With Mackinac Island visible in the background, the U.S. Navy's new littoral combat ship anchored off the St. Ignace shore Saturday, November 1. The ship arrived Friday evening, October 31, and will be commissioned the USS Freedom later this week in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. "Fast, Fearless, Focused" is the motto of the new U.S. Navy vessel that sailed into the Straits over the weekend, and anchored off shore of St. Ignace and Mackinac Island. The ship has been in the Great Lakes conducting trials since it was launched in September from Marinette, Wisconsin, the same shipyard that built the Coast Guard icebreaker Mackinaw.

The Navy boat will be commissioned the USS Freedom (LCS 1) later this week in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This is the first commissioning of a U.S. Navy warship in the Great Lakes since World War II.

A littoral combat ship, the 379- foot vessel is the first of its kind to be built for the Navy. She is built to operate in waters near shore, is outfitted with the latest war fighting capabilities and technologies, and is designed to defeat fast surface craft, mines, and quiet diesel submarines.

The ship has two Rolls Royce gas turbines providing 96,550 horsepower, two 17,160 horsepower Fairbanks Morse Colt- Pielstick diesels, and four Rolls Royce Kamewa waterjets.

When armed, the gray hulled ship will carry missiles and machine guns and be able to launch decoys to confuse enemy radar. She can also carry two helicopters.

The combat ship arrived in the Straits Friday evening, October 31, and could be seen testing her high speed capabilities as she sailed under the Mackinac Bridge. The vessel is designed to be fast and maneuverable and will travel at more than 45 knots, or greater than 50 miles per hour.

A raft was deployed from the vessel Saturday afternoon that traveled along the downtown St. Ignace shoreline, entering the city marina before returning to the ship.

Specific information on the trials taking place here is not being released, said Petty Officer William Mitchell, a spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard Ninth District in Cleveland, Ohio. The ship arrived in the area after attending a ceremony in Duluth, Minnesota, he said.

Navy Lieutenant Commander Philip Rosi II told The St. Ignace News Monday, November 3, the crew was putting the ship through her paces, testing capabilities, and getting familiar with traveling through the Soo Locks. LCDR Rosi is with the U.S. Fleet Forces Command for Public Affairs in Norfolk, Virginia, although he originally is from Traverse City.

The last time the Navy conducted Great Lakes cruises was in 1999, he said.

Traveling into Lake Superior provided training for the crew, he said, who will sail the vessel from Milwaukee through the Great Lakes and into the lock system on her way to Norfolk.

"Each ship has its own unique handling characteristics," he said, "and you want to build crew proficiency with that ship."

The ship will operate with a crew of about 40, plus it can have an aviation crew and interchangeable mission modules, all of which can increase its crew to about 80. The mission packages will allow the ship to be used for mine warfare, anti-submarine warfare, surface warfare, and humanitarian relief.

After leaving St. Ignace Saturday afternoon, November 1, the ship was headed to Milwaukee, where she will be commissioned Saturday, November 8. From there the vessel will head to Norfolk. From Virginia, the USS Freedom will sail to her homeport of San Diego, California.