HARRISBURG – Rep. Karen Boback (R-Lackawanna/Luzerne/Wyoming), House Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee majority chairman, yesterday hosted Rear Adm. Thomas Anderson at the state Capitol, where he provided an update on construction of the future USS Harrisburg. As program executive officer for ships, Anderson is responsible for U.S. Navy shipbuilding for surface combatants, amphibious ships, logistics support ships, support craft and related foreign military sales. According to the Navy, the city of Harrisburg and surrounding region play a central role the country’s national defense infrastructure, hosting a myriad of defense logistics and naval supply support activities. Anderson said the keel-laying ceremony for the $2 billion ship took place last January at Huntington Ingalls Shipbuilding in Mississippi, where it is being built. The ship will be nearly 700 feet long, weigh more than 25,000 tons and carry over 1,000 sailors and Marines. Christening is scheduled for 2024 and she will be placed into service the next year. This is the second U.S. Navy ship to be named after the city of Harrisburg. The first was a troopship acquired during World War I.
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