The US Navy has signed an agreement with Textron Systems to build more Landing Craft Air Cushion 100-class (LCAC 100) vessels.
The $353.9-million modification contract covers the construction and supply of three hovercraft, with an expected completion date of 2031.
It builds on a primary order signed in August 2023 for up to 73 ships to replace the military’s older LCACs, operational since the 1980s.
Next-Gen Landing Craft Air Cushion
Similar to its precursors, the new LCAC fleet will undertake assault landing, over-the-horizon transport, and related expeditionary mission support.
Other tasks include supply rotations, heavy equipment movement, and ground vehicle hauls between amphibious ships and ashore sites.
Each boat can be armed with mounted naval guns, machine guns, and grenade launchers and is powered by four Rolls-Royce MT7 gas turbines for a combined output of 28,000 horsepower.
The 92-foot (28-meter) LCAC has a range of approximately 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers/230 miles) and a maximum speed of 35 knots (65 kilometers/40 miles per hour).
Progress
In November 2024, the US Navy placed an order for nine LCAC 100s. Textron then delivered the fourteenth hovercraft under the program, the LCAC 113, in June 2025.
The company is currently working on the serial production of LCACs 114 to 126.
The first two boats of the effort, the LCAC 100 and LCAC 101, entered service in August 2020.
