America-Class Amphibious Assault Ships Drive New Concepts of Operation

By Kris Osborn, President, Center for Military Modernization

(Washington D.C.) The U.S. Navy is now surging ahead with its 3rd America-class amphibious assault ship designed to support new concepts of amphibious assault moving into the future. There is an increased need for new concepts of operation involving the greater use of unmanned systems and the need to project 5th-generation air power from the ocean.

America-Class, Explained

The original concept for the America-class amphibious assault ship was to leverage the range and capacity of aviation assets such as the F-35B and Osprey tiltrotor to project power from the sea in support of air-sea attack operations.

The first two America class ships, the USS America and USS Tripoli, were built without a well-deck to fully optimize air assets; the Osprey operates with a 450 nautical miles combat radius and can transport Marines, weapons and equipment behind enemy lines for Mounted Vertical Maneuver operations.

Similar to the first-in-class USS America, the USS Tripoli has been engineered with a specific F-35 and Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft-oriented aviation configuration with extra hangar space, additional fuel storage, and other key provisions intended to enable amphibious air-attack platforms. A report from Naval Sea Systems Command says the ship’s “design features an enlarged hangar deck, aviation maintenance facilities realignment and expansion, a significant increase in available stowage for parts and support equipment, and increased aviation fuel capacity.”

While the third America-class amphibious assault ship, the now under construction USS Bougainville, brings back the classic well-deck characteristic of many big-deck amphibious assault ships, the first two seem clearly intended to optimize the increased ranges and amphibious attack variables introduced by the arrival of the F-35B fighter jet. The USS America, for instance, has already deployed carrying more than thirteen F-35Bs. 

Preparing for the F-35 fighter took some special engineering in recent years. Navy developers made special structural adjustments and added special coating materials to the USS Tripoli’s flight deck to mitigate potential heat damage caused by the F-35B’s vertical takeoff and landing capabilities. The arrival of the F-35B in terms of 5th-generation air power projection from amphibs offers new tactical possibilities to increase range and conduct air operations from the sea with much greater effectiveness.