Freedom at Dawn by DavidEMartin
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Description
Here's the third of the subjects I was photographing by dawn's light. I punched the color up a little to overcome the color balancing done by the camera.
At the time I took these images, I had no idea what the heck it was or even what it was called.
So I was playing spy, trying to figure out what I could based on the visuals. The ship has a shallow draft based on its position moored directly onto the lakeside Veterans Park. There is only one visible weapon, that small turret on the foredeck, but there might be retracted missile launchers. The rear deck suggested a hangar deck for aircraft although there did not seem much space for a helicopter to land.
As if by kismet, after I went back to the car, the radio had a short NPR piece on the ship, the USS Freedom.
So, one Google later.....
The USS Freedom is the first of something called a "Littoral Combat Ship". I have no idea what that means.
Here's the ship's website--
http://www.ussfreedom.org/home
Local news note-- last year a conservative group was trying to coerce the city to acquire a mothballed Naval cruiser and permanently place it pretty much right where the Freedom is moored. Given how much the presumably shorter Freedom is wrecking the view from the park, it's good the city rejected the pressure group's plans.
Comments (11)
november22
Littoral refers to close in shore work [brown water navy], as opposed to the blue water navy of the last few centuries. Interesting - nice shot to for that time of day.
evielouise
love the dawn lights on the ship.must be lovely to see early morn: great photo I truly love going to the marina always hugs )))
dbrv6
Very nice shot indeed. I remember reading a mission statement about these ships a while ago. What November22 said is right and gives an idea of their mission.
drace68
Great write-up on Wikipedia. Just punch in "Uss Freedom" and go to third listing, or: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Freedom_(LCS-1). Fast over the water and shallow draft are a plus, but doggone, she looks like a a fat target. Supposedly bound for San Diego.
DavidEMartin
Thanks for the info, especially that definition! The ship is a tad foreshortened by the angle I shot it at but yes, it is a very tall, very wide target. What I find fascinating is the modular nature of the ship. It can be equipped with different equipment modules for differing missions. Imagine the Shuttle's cargo bay but deadlier. The Freedom set sail sometime this morning. Folks living in the Detroit area will probably be able to spot it in a few days once it rounds Michigan and heads for Lake Erie and the St Lawrence Seaway.
shayhurs
Nice pic indeed! For a close (in shore) warship, I see a major problem (to add to the cost overruns and other issues surrounding the vessel): Even removing the bunting from the bow, the bow flares UP--reducing your line of fire as far as depressing the gun. Since your in close to the shore, you'll be facing (probably) smaller boats or power boats (favorites of the Iranians and the pirates off Somalia). Therefore, it appears you are limiting the usability of the heaviest asset in your offensive/defensive suite up front. In this case, up close, bringing a knife to a gun fight might actually work better. Sigh, what do you get when you design a warship by committee?...
Osper
Very good "spy" work. The picture is intriguing. It is a new breed of ship that is "netwokable" Ah heck check the web site. There's more stuff there.
ontar1
Its a command ship, for close in support of ground and sea forces, not to much of a target, first you have to find it then get past the defenders. All weapons are defense only against boarders. More than likely a 3 to 5 inch auto load cannon fore mount, bridge/superstructure probably four cwis 20mm vulcan cannons, two to four fifty caliber machine guns mid to aft and helicopter hanger and landing pad. For small helos like a cobra and huey. Excellent capture!!!!!!!!!!
mizoli
Very nice light, excellent image!
kasalin
Very beautiful work, my friend !!! 5+ Hugs:)
Buffalo1
Here is what the official launching (Nov. 8, 2008) website had to say about the USS Freedom: "The LCS is envisioned to be a networked, agile, stealthy surface combatant capable of defeating anti-access and asymmetric threats in the littorals." Don't you love military speak? You and the other guys have it right. It is a combination ship (gunboat, mine sweeper, submarine hunter, and humanitarian relief ship) that is meant for shallow water. It can operate helicopters, and unmanned drones. The turret mounts a 57mm gun and there is also an internal missle launcher. Ontar is right, it also has a good old M2 .50 cal. machinegun on top of the hangar. Good spy job and great photo of the Navy's newest type of ship, David.