Maritime News

A living memorial to those who died on Flight 93 on September 11, 2001 is being built right here in Louisiana. The USS Somerset is a San-Antonio Class amphibious transport dock that will carry 699 Marines and the equipment they need to fight terrorism and provide humanitarian aid around the world. The ship is named for Somerset County, Pennsylvania, the site of the September 11 crash.

 
The keel was dedicated in a ceremony in Avondale on December 11, 2009. A plaque in the shape of Somerset County was inscribed by Mary Jo Myers, the ships sponsor and the wife of former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers.

 
The stemhold for the USS Somerset is poured from recycled steel salvaged from two large cranes from the reclaimed strip mine where Flight 93 crashed near Shanksville. 

 
The USS Somerset is being built in ship yards outside New Orleans. She is the third in a group of San Antonio Class ships to be dedicated to the victims and events of September 11, 2001. The USS New York honors World Trade Center victims and the USS Arlington is dedicated to the memory of those lost in the Pentagon. All three ships were built by Northrop Grumman’s Gulf Coast operations.

 
The christening and launch are planned for 2011.

 
The maritime law and Jones Act attorneys at The Young Firm wish the USS Somerset smooth sailing.