WHAT: Honored U.S. Navy guests and representatives of the Alabama delegation, along with members of the General Dynamics Littoral Combat Ship Team, will participate in a keel laying ceremony for the General Dynamics Littoral Combat Ship.  LCS 2, a revolutionary trimaran warship, is part of a new family of surface ships for the U.S. Navy.

Dr. Delores M. Etter, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition, will serve as the keynote speaker and inscribe her initials onto a special aluminum plate to authenticate the keel of the LCS 2.

The keel laying ceremony celebrates the laying down of the ship’s backbone. The ceremony has come to mark one of the major milestones in the life of the ship as it symbolizes the point at which the ship begins to transition from concept to reality.

WHERE:         Austal USA, 100 Dunlap Drive, Mobile, Ala.

WHEN:           Thursday, January 19, 2006
                        1:30 p.m. CST: Ceremony
                      2:30 p.m. CST: Reception for media and other attendees

SCHEDULED SPEAKERS:  

• Dugan Shipway, President, Bath Iron Works, A General Dynamics Company
• John Rothwell, Executive Chairman, Austal, Ltd.
• U.S. Representative Jo Bonner, 1st District Alabama
• Dr. Delores Etter, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Research, Development & Acquisition
• Rear Adm. Charles S. Hamilton, II, Program Executive Officer for Ships, Naval Sea System Command

The event is closed to the public and guests are admitted by invitation only. For photography or more information, interested members of the media should contact:

Jessica Pantages
General Dynamics
Advanced Information Systems                                    
P: 703-271-7316                                                         
C: 703-304-9663                                                        

Jim DeMartini
General Dynamics
Bath Iron Works
P: 207-442-1695
C: 207-841-0447