TOTE, Hanwha Philly to build US missile range instrumentation vessels

Two new military ships known as missile range instrumentation vessels (MRIV) will replace two 50-year-old ships in the US department of war’s missile defense agency fleet.

Hanwha Philly Shipyard and TOTE Services have been selected to deliver the U.S. missile defense agency’s vessels in a project reportedly worth about $2bn.

The MRIV will replace the Pacific Tracker and Pacific Collector, which currently support missile range instrumentation missions, and were constructed in 1965 and 1970, respectively.

Under the project, the U.S. shipbuilder Hanwha Philly Shipyard will build the ships at its Philadelphia shipyard, while the compatriot vessel construction management and ship management specialist TOTE Services will serve as the vessel construction manager.

Both MRIVs will be constructed at Hanwha Philly Shipyard, and the first one is slated for delivery by June 2030.

The contract announcement was made during the christening of the U.S. department of transportation’s fourth national security multi-mission vessel Lone Star State, set for delivery in the coming months, which will train the next generation of merchant mariners at Texas A&M Maritime Academy.

The first ship is toe be dubbed Golden Defender.

Speaking at the christening of the Lone Star State, the director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, Russ Vought, announced the award, “This new ship will not only support the President’s policy of restoring America’s Maritime Dominance, but also support the President’s ‘Golden Dome’ missile defense system over the entirety of our nation. Golden Defender will serve the Missile Defense Agency in this mission.”

“In christening the Lone Star State, we are sending a message that the next generation of maritime leaders are worth investing in,” said U.S. transportation secretary Sean P. Duffy. “These two new vessels – built by American patriots in the city our nation was founded in – will equip our military to better protect the nation and our servicemembers from foreign threats.”

The $2bn investment, funded by US president’s Working Families Tax Cut Act, is part of Trump’s executive order to restore America’s maritime dominance.