<p>HONOLULU — A new class of U.S. Navy vessel is expected to be deployed for the first time in Hawaii as part of a sweeping force redesign.</p>
<p>The Light Amphibious Warship can pull onto beaches and costs between $100 million and $130 million, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser <a href="https://www.staradvertiser.com/2021/02/22/hawaii-news/hawaii-first-to-get-new-warships-that-can-pull-up-onto-beaches/?HSA=5a15d2b4215202b4a4e3fbce48c3e517e2f747c5">reported</a>.</p>
<p>The ships with lengths between 200 and 400 feet (61 and 122 meters) are part of a new U.S. Marine Corps Littoral Regiment, which will include troops with ship-killing missiles operating in small units from the islands dotting the Western Pacific.</p>
<p>The Light Amphibious Warships can carry 40 sailors and at least 75 Marines, with 4,000 to 8,000 square feet (372 to 743 square meters) of cargo area and a minimum unrefueled range of 3,500 nautical miles (6,482 kilometers), the Congressional Research Service said.</p>
<p>Littoral refers to operations around the shore, where equipment and personnel can be shifted from water to ground and back.</p>
<p>The Navy plans to operate 28 to 30 of the smaller amphibious ships, which are comparatively cheaper than a new destroyer costing more than $1.5 billion.</p>
<p>The number of the ships to be based in Hawaii and a possible site for practice landings remain unclear. Marine Littoral Regiments may also operate in Guam and Japan as counterweights to China’s growing naval fleet.</p>
<p>Lt. Gen. Eric Smith, head of the Marine Corps Combat Development Command, said on Feb. 10 that a variety of assets including the new, smaller vessels will allow Marines to rapidly distribute what amounts to reinforced, platoon-size elements with a big impact.</p>
<p>“In the past you think, ‘Well, there’s 75 Marines in location X. They’re not a threat,’” Smith said. “If I can sink one of your $1.5 billion warships with a $1.5 million missile, I am a threat.”</p>
