Page 28: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (May 2001)

Naval Report lowing the announcement of a definitive agreement for GD to acquire NNS in a cash tender offer for all NNS's outstand- ing shares. The transaction is valued at approximately $2.6 billion, including approximately $500 million of existing

NNS's debt. GD, continuing the consol- idation process of the defense sector, plans to acquire NNS in a transaction that will combine its Navy shipbuilding and submarine business with the subma- rine and aircraft carrier businesses of

NNS. This transaction would make GD the sole supplier of submarines and air- craft carriers for the U.S. Navy.

Moody's review will focus on the strategic benefits of this transaction for

GD as well as on the potential synergies of combining the shipyard operations of the two companies. These potential syn- ergies will be considered in the context of any limitations or requirements that may be imposed by regulators or the

DOD as part of the approval process for the transaction. In its review, Moody's will also consider the challenges which

GD may face in integrating NNS into its operations, and the company's ability to avoid the difficulties that have occurred in other recent business combinations in the aerospace/defense sector.

Navy Honors Propeller Expert

Senior naval officers and government officials will recognize the career of Dr.

William B. Morgan in a naming cere- mony April 27 at the U.S. Navy's Large

Cavitation Channel (LCC). This unique engineering test facility will bear the name of the former head of the Naval

Surface Warfare Center, Carderock

Division's Hydromechanics Directorate who retired in December after 50 years of service to the nation. The facility will be known as the William B. Morgan

Large Cavitation Channel.

The ceremony takes place 10 years after the April 1991 dedication of the facility. Since that time, the LCC has provided almost 6,000 hours of advanced hydrodynamic and hydroa- coustic testing. U.S. Navy test programs supported include the latest naval ship designs such as the Virginia and Sea- wolf Class submarine and Arleigh

Burke Class destroyer. The LCC has also supported basic research programs with universities such as Mississippi

State, University of Michigan, Califor- nia Institute of Technology and Johns

Hopkins University.

The LCC is the largest and most tech- nically advanced, pressurized, closed- loop, recirculating water tunnel in the world. The hydrodynamic and hydroa- coustic test facility supports advanced ship research and design testing as well as basic research. The buildings and land were originally part of a commer- cial installation on President's Island.

After several years of leasing during the construction and start-up phase, the

Navy purchased the site in 1994.

U.S. Navy Commissions Latest

Aegis Destroyer

The U.S. Navy commissioned the

USS Lassen (DDG 82), the newest in a series of Aegis guided missile destroy- ers built by Litton Ingalls Shipbuilding, a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman Cor- poration. Measuring 509.5 ft. (155.2 m) and 9,300 tons, USS Lassen, which is the 32nd ship of 58 Arleigh Burke (DDG 51) Class destroyers currently authorized by Congress — is the 14th to be built by Ingalls. Following DDG 82,

Ingalls has contracts and options to pro- duce 11 additional Aegis destroyers, with six of those ships in various stages of production. Upon USS Lassen's departure from Tampa, the vessel will be homeported in San Diego as an ele- ment of Destroyer Squadron 23, headed by Cmdr. Sean E. O'Connor, USN.

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