September 21, 2008 update: The USN has formally accepted the USS Freedom (LCS-1) from the contractor, Lockheed Martin/Marinette Marine/Gibbs and Cox in Marinette, Wisconsin on September 18, 2008.
USS Freedom (LCS-1) returns to its home port in Marinette, Wisconsin, after completing acceptance trials in Lake Michigan. Photo credit: Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jhi L. Scott, USN, August 20, 2008.
The next step is for the crew to move aboard and prepare the ship to leave for Milwaukee, where she will be commissioned. Following commissioning, she will head out of the Great Lakes to Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia. The crew will then take her out for sea trials in the ocean. Until now, she has gone through sea trials only in Lake Michigan. The ocean will make demands on some systems that they have not yet experienced. It is our understanding Freedom will home port in San Diego.
