08/06/2019 The U.S. Navy commissioned the USS Billings – the nation’s eighth Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ship– in Key West, Florida over the weekend. This milestone officially places the Fincantieri Marinette Marine-built LCS 15 into active service. Unique among combat ships, LCS are designed to complete close-to-shore missions and is a growing and relevant part of the Navy’s fleet. There are currently seven ships in various stages of production and test at Fincantieri Marinette Marine, where the Freedom-variant LCS is built. The next Freedom-variant in the class is LCS 17, the future USS Indianapolis, which was delivered to the Navy last month.