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USS Kansas City (LCS 22)

USS KANSAS CITY is the eleventh INDEPENDENCE - class Littoral Combat Ship and the second ship in the Navy named for the city in Missouri.

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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS KANSAS CITY. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.

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USS KANSAS CITY History:

USS KANSAS CITY, an INDEPENDENCE-variant littoral combat ship built by Austal USA at Mobile, Alabama, formally began assembly when the Navy authenticated her keel on November 15, 2017, at Austal's Mobile yard, with ship's sponsor Tracy Davidson presiding. She was christened in Mobile on September 22, 2018 and launched into the Mobile River on October 19, 2018, moving immediately into the shipyard's completion and trials pipeline. The ship executed acceptance trials in the Gulf of Mexico across October 31-November 1, 2019, demonstrating propulsion plant, electrical generation/distribution, aviation facilities, combat systems, and shiphandling in open-ocean and near-shore profiles under the Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV). Following post-trial corrections and documentation, the Navy accepted delivery during a brief ceremony at Austal Mobile on February 12, 2020.

After delivery on the Gulf Coast, KANSAS CITY shifted to the Pacific. She arrived at her homeport of Naval Base San Diego on May 27, 2020, entering the waterfront integration rhythm under LITTORAL COMBAT SHIP SQUADRON ONE. The Navy commissioned the ship administratively on June 20, 2020, a low-visibility event due to COVID-19 restrictions, with the traditional full public ceremony deferred. Through the second half of 2020, the crew completed post-delivery checks, corrected remaining trial cards, and began the LCS training and certification ladder in Southern California Operating Areas, focusing on small-crew watch organization, boat operations, aviation support readiness, and damage control.

In 2021, the ship continued local operations and certifications out of San Diego. She is documented operating off the California coast in mid-August (August 16, 2021), reflecting routine underway periods that built bridge team proficiency, flight-deck operations with the MH-60 detachment model, and shiphandling in congested traffic schemes. The Navy held KANSAS CITY's deferred public commissioning commemoration on her flight deck at Naval Base San Diego on December 17, 2021, formally marking the "bring her to life" milestone that pandemic conditions had delayed. By year's end, the ship had completed the baseline material and training checks needed for a sustained readiness cycle, with crew swaps and shore support aligned to the INDEPENDENCE-variant manning model.

The early 2022 timeline shows continued San Diego-based operations and community engagement. On January 21, 2022, a World War II Navy veteran from Kansas City visited the ship during a scheduled stop at Naval Base San Diego, one of several public-affairs touchpoints that year. In the autumn, KANSAS CITY executed a high-visibility Fleet Week evolution to the Bay Area: alongside other 3rd Fleet units, she opened for public tours in San Francisco on October 5, 2022, then participated in the San Francisco Fleet Week Parade of Ships on October 7, 2022, transiting beneath the Golden Gate Bridge in formation with USS PRINCETON (CG 59), USS HARPERS FERRY (LSD 49), and USS FITZGERALD (DDG 62) before mooring for the week's demonstrations and outreach. Operationally, she integrated with a carrier strike group logistics event in the eastern Pacific in late autumn: on December 2, 2022, KANSAS CITY conducted a fueling-at-sea with USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN (CVN 72) during routine 3rd Fleet operations, an evolution that reinforced the ship's ability to sustain at-sea tasking with a large-deck partner and validated replenishment interfaces for the trimaran hull form.

KANSAS CITY's 2023 activity remained centered on the Southern California waterfront. On May 12, 2023, the ship held a change-of-command ceremony pier-side at Naval Base San Diego, ensuring continuity of command through the next phase of training and fleet tasking. Beyond routine underway periods, the ship supported public outreach events on the West Coast during late spring and summer while maintaining material readiness for future deployments.

In 2024, the ship continued type training, maintenance, and crew development from San Diego, consistent with the Navy's revised LCS employment model that emphasized single-crew continuity and predictable maintenance availabilities on the West Coast. Across the year, she cycled through basic phase checks, combat systems groom periods, and aviation support refreshers with HSC detachments while remaining aligned to LCSRON ONE tasking.

The 2025 chronology reflects material readiness checks and leadership continuity. On January 22, 2025, KANSAS CITY completed a day-long underway in the San Diego Operating Areas for an INSURV material assessment event, returning the same day to moor at Naval Base San Diego. On June 12, 2025, she conducted another change-of-command ceremony at San Diego, marking the turnover to a new commanding officer for the next operating cycle. Throughout mid- and late-2025, she continued local operations out of San Diego, with multiple documented arrivals and departures from the bay through mid-August and early October as she executed short underway periods, systems checks, and pier-side maintenance interleaves. Planning for her next major industrial period advanced on the Navy side in the summer of 2025, when Naval Sea Systems Command released a solicitation to industry for a Fiscal Year 2026 Docking Selected Restricted Availability (DSRA) for KANSAS CITY - an indicator of the scope and timing for her next docking maintenance package and modernization inserts.

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USS KANSAS CITY Image Gallery:

The photo below was taken by Michael Jenning and shows the KANSAS CITY during fitting-out in the port of Mobile, Ala., on October 17, 2019.

The photos below were taken by Sebastian Thoma and show the KANSAS CITY at Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on November 28, 2021, and one day later while getting underway with the help of two tugs.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the KANSAS CITY during sunset at San Francisco, Calif., on October 4, 2022. KANSAS CITY is in San Francisco to participate in the San Francisco Fleet Week.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning aboard USS KANSAS CITY during an open ship event as part of Fleet Week San Francisco on October 5, 2022.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show USS KANSAS CITY during the Parade of Ships as part of Fleet Week San Francisco on October 7, 2022.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show USS KANSAS CITY at Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on October 15, 2024.

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