The U.S. Navy commissioned USS Kansas City via naval message and without the typical crowd Saturday amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Independence-variant littoral combat ship arrived at Naval Base San Diego on May 24.
The Navy said it may commemorate the special event with the ship’s sponsor Tracy Davidson, crew, and commissioning committee at a later date.
Kansas City’s commanding officer, Cmdr. R.J. Zamberlan, reported the ship ready, saying, “The caliber of crew required to prepare a warship entering the fleet is second to none... This crew has exceeded expectations in unprecedented times and I could not be prouder to be their captain.”
Kansas City is the 11th of the Independence-variant to join the fleet and second ship to be named for Kansas City, according to the Navy. The name Kansas City was assigned to a heavy cruiser during World War II but construction was canceled after one month when the war ended.
The name Kansas City was also assigned to the Wichita-class replenishment oiler AOR-3 in 1967. This ship saw service in the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm and was decommissioned in 1994, the Navy said.
Kansas City will be homeported at the base with sister ships USS Independence, USS Coronado, USS Jackson, USS Montgomery, USS Gabrielle Giffords, USS Omaha, USS Manchester, USS Tulsa, USS Charleston and USS Cincinnati.
Kansas City was built in Mobile, Alabama, by Austal USA and General Dynamics, according to the Navy.
