A rendering of a U.S. Navy frigate to be built at Fincantieri Marinette Marine (Image courtesy Fincantieri Marinette Marine)
MARINETTE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A new type of Navy ship is being built at Fincantieri Marinette Marine.
The company is hosting a keel-laying ceremony for ship FFG 52, the future USS Constellation.
According to Fincantieri, keel-laying ceremonies historically involved the laying down of the central or main timber forming the backbone of the vessel. Shipbuilders would then engrave their initials onto the keel to show their belief in the strength of the boat they were about to build.
The USS Constellation will have the initials of Melissa Braithwaite, the ship’s sponsor. She is the wife of Kenneth Braithwaite 77th Secretary of the Navy.
The Constellation is the first frigate to be built in Marinette. It is part of a Navy contract for 10 ships announced in 2020 that could be worth more than $5.5 billion.
The shipyard has been building littoral combat ships, but the Navy is transitioning to the more heavily-armored frigate.
Fincantieri Marinette Marine opened its new facility for building frigates in December.
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