The 12th San Antonio-class amphibious warship formally entered service on July 30 in a ceremony in Florida.

USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD-28) is the first LPD-17 commissioned beyond the original 11 LPD-17s envisioned for the class. Fort Lauderdale serves as the bridge between the current class and the Flight II San Antonios that will replace the Whidbey Island and Harpers Ferry amphibious warships (LSD-41/49).

The Navy’s 30-year shipbuilding plan reveals a broader fight within the Defense Department. The issue is not simply strategic, but operational and force-structural — how to transform the Navy to ensure it can deter and defeat China in a large-scale Indo-Pacific war.

The Sea Services should grasp the role large amphibious warships will play in a Pacific war.

Ingalls Shipbuilding, HII’s builder of surface warships, has the industrial facilities and workforce to add to the capacity of its portfolio, a senior Ingalls official said.

“We have the ability to take on more work that we do today,” said George Nungesser, vice president for program management at Ingalls, speaking May 11 to reporters at the Modern-Day Marine Expo in Washington.